Castform Chronicles
by Castformrain
Summary: Weekly stories about the Hoenn Weather Institute and the quirky "Cast" of characters who live there. Chapters are formatted similarly to a TV show, with episodes and seasons; but don't worry, it isn't in script-speak. Read if you want a fun, relatively relaxed Pokemon fanfic.
1. S1E1: The Successful Experiment

**SEASON 1**

**I drew the cover myself. :P**

******This particular episode is long because it's a season opener. ********So don't worry, the other episodes aren't all as long as this one. And plus, after you're done reading this episode you can bounce around the episodes as much as you like. (Although if you're going to take the time to read the whole story, you might as well read them in order.) **

**I'll be updating this fic every Saturday. The stories will probably be all over the place... sometimes action-packed, sometimes cute, sometimes profound, but always fun.**

**Without further ado: Here's Episode One!**

* * *

EPISODE 1: The Successful Experiment

It was a calm, peaceful day at the Hoenn Weather Institute. Scientists were busy milling around, checking temperatures and identifying cloud cover: all of the things they did on a typical day. However, on the second floor, one scientist in particular was busy testing out one of their latest creations: a brand new Pokemon.

Created by mixing the water vapor in clouds with a mix of generic DNA, Castform had been created. He was about as large as a soccer ball, maybe slightly smaller. His cream-white skin was soft and fluffy as cotton. A mask-like gray design surrounded two bright, soothing eyes. Two round appendages protruded from the Castform's underside, allow him to grasp small objects. A tail-like whip of fluff extended behind them, with an identical strand of fluff sprouting above his head.

The Castform was mostly just allowed to stay inside his transparent enclosure up until now, since the scientists had been unsure of what would happen if they exposed him into the open air. But the Castform didn't mind. In the enclosure, temperatures had been carefully monitored along with humidity levels. And today, the scientists were finally ready to perform their first test on the Castform.

"All right," said the scientist, flipping a switch on a keyboard nearby. A nametag on his lab coat read "Professor Stratus." A large screen on the far wall flickered on, displaying an image of the Castform in his enclosure, along with stats on his heart rate, health, size, and weight. The temperature, air pressure, and humidity of the enclosure were also displayed on the screen.

The Castform watched the screen with interest. He moved to the side, and so did his image on the screen! He bobbed up and down, and so did his screen self! He twirled around, and his screen self did the same.

_It's like a friend,_ the Castform thought to himself. _A friend who looks just like me._

Professor Stratus laughed at the Weather Pokemon's curious movements, then adjusted his glasses. "Okay little guy, here we go: time to test out your Forecast ability." He pinched one of the knobs on the keyboard with two fingers and slowly turned it down, decreasing the temperature inside the Castform's enclosure slightly. Then, he pressed a few keys and a sprinkler system went on inside the enclosure. Droplets of water rained down on the Castform, and the little Weather Pokemon's eyes widened in surprise.

The professor watched with awe as the Castform's image blurred, then quickly picked up a notepad to start writing. The Castform was morphing, changing form. A thin film of blue liquid slowly encased the Castform's head, eventually grow thicker and more pointed. His body grew darker in color, and his two round appendages morphed into many more. In about ten seconds, the transformation was complete. Castform had changed into its Rain Form.

Professor Stratus stopped taking notes for a moment simply to revel at the transformation the Castform had overgone. He glanced quickly at the screen and continued to take notes.

The Castform felt a sudden shift of mood after turning into his Rain Form. He was much calmer. His temperature seemed to have dropped slightly, and he closed his eyes, mellowing in the tranquil bliss. He frowned, feeling slightly melancholic. The sprinkler droplets still ran down his face, almost like tears.

_Will I live the rest of my life here in this institute? _he wondered. An overwhelming sadness washed over him, and he slowly sank to the bottom of the enclosure.

Professor Stratus noticed this, and quickly shut off the sprinkler system. He pinched the knob again and brought the temperature up, higher, higher, higher, up to 80 degrees. Then he pressed another series of keys and a lamp went on the enclosure, casting light upon the room.

The Castform's body blurred once more, and he started to make a second transformation. The blue water-like film around his face faded to purple, then red, and finally a light orange. A crown of translucent spheres framed his face, and three white spheres around his body formed to match. Professor Stratus was busy taking notes, and by the time Castform had finished transforming, those notes were complete. The Castform was now in its Sun Form.

The Weather Pokemon's mood had changed yet again, just like when it had converted into Rain Form. Only this time, a bright, cheerful smile spread across the Castform's face. He laughed, a soft noise that sounded like clouds brushing across the sky, and did a seamless backflip. His eyes were creased up into cheerful lines, and all the Castform could do was frolic and revel in the lamp's beautiful bright light.

_What a wonderful feeling!_ Castform thought. _Warmth! Sunlight!_

A tiny smile lingered on Professor Stratus' face. Then he turned back to the keyboard and pinched the knob one last time. This time he lowered it down to 20 degrees Fahrenheit.

The Castform began to change again. The orange film around its face bulged forward to encompass its entire body, swirling around into a green cloud-like formation. His face darkened to a deep purple color, and a single point formed beneath him. The top of his head was covered in a sundae-like formation and he glared at his surroundings. In the snowy, cold temperatures, his heart had turned into frozen, merciless ice. He trusted nobody, and his ice-cold fury could be sparked at any moment.

Recognizing this, Professor Stratus turned off the snow machine and returned the temperature in the enclosure back to room temperature. The Castform morphed from its Snow Form back into its regular, simple white form. Its bitter expression softened into one of calm relaxation.

_What an adventure_, the Castform thought to himself. _Changing forms is almost like changing to a completely different Pokemon… different appearances and different personalities!_

Professor Stratus walked up to the glass to look at the Castform. He really had bonded with this Castform in the past few days, and it was a thrill to find out that his experiment had been a success. So, this scientist decided that it was finally time to give the Castform a name. He thought for a while: he didn't want anything too elaborate: when in doubt, simple was always best.

"Cast," he murmured to himself. That was a nice name: short, and close enough to the Pokemon's actual species name. "Cast it is."

The newly named Castform smiled and nodded at Professor Stratus. Cast floated over to a corner of the enclosure and settled down, where he quickly fell asleep. Changing into so many forms so quickly was a tiring business.

Professor Stratus watched Cast for a few seconds, then headed towards the room's exit. He turned around, wished Cast a silent "Good night" and flicked off the light switch. "Until tomorrow."

* * *

Cast woke up late the next morning. He was tired, and there were little bags under his dark eyes. After blinking twice, the room came into focus: Professor Stratus was… lifting the top off of the enclosure! Three other scientists were huddled behind him to watch the event. Cast's eyes shot open with excitement, and a shaft of light fell from a nearby window to land on him. He quickly morphed into his Sun Form, causing him to spin and dance in the air.

Professor Stratus smiled: late last night, he'd made the decision to finally let the Castform out of his enclosure. He'd spoken with a few of the other scientists during the morning, and they'd generally affirmed his decision. Cast had passed all of the tests, and he was healthy as could be.

However, Professor Stratus was somewhat intrigued by the shaft of light that had fallen on Cast, almost as if on cue. After a few seconds to think it over, there was not a shred of doubt in his mind: Cast had caused that beam of sunlight to shine from the sky with a move called Sunny Day. Cast not only had the power to change forms with the weather, but also the power to change the weather to match his mood!

Meanwhile, Sun Cast was slowly rising up and out of the enclosure. He looked around at each and every one of the scientists.

First, he floated up to Professor Cirrus, a thin, wispy Professor with long, light brown hair. She smiled timidly when Sun Cast came up to her, and waved at him. Sun Cast bobbed his head in return and moved onto the next professor.

His name was Professor Cumulus; he was a rotund man with rosy cheeks and a satisfied smile. Cumulus beamed when the Weather Pokemon came up to him, and went so far as to stroke one of the little orange spheres around Sun Cast's head.

Professor Stratus looked like he was about to jump forward and stop it, but before he could, Professor Cumulus declared, "Why, it's soft as cotton candy. Simply marvelous." Professor Stratus noticed that Cast didn't seem to be feeling any pain from Cumulus's gentle touch, so he withdrew again and watched. "He's a male, not an it," Stratus said quietly.

Meanwhile, Sun Cast was moving on to the next scientist: Professor Nimbus. She was tall, with a length of curly black hair and a distrustful scowl. When cheerful Sun Cast floated up to her, she simply stared back at it. Sun Cast frowned, and the beam of light coming from the window slowly faded, sending him back to his normal form.

Professor Stratus quickly stepped forward, and Professor Nimbus stepped back. "Now Cast," Stratus said. "From now on, this entire institute along with the boundaries of Fortree Woods are your home. Be sure not to stray away beyond those areas, and make sure to return to the institute before sunset. Understand?"

Cast bobbed his head up and down. "What makes you think it understands human speech?" Professor Nimbus asked doubtfully.

"It's a Pokemon," Stratus replied. "All Pokemon can understand human speech, even though they may not be able to respond."

After meeting each of the present Professors, Cast moved over to the staircase and floated downwards. He found himself on the lower level of the Weather Institute. A few of the other scientists were looking at a large weather chart of the Hoenn region, discussing a small storm cloud that seemed to be passing over Petalburg Town. Elsewhere, two interns chatted while they swept up a pile of broken glass.

Cast watched with curiosity as the two interns swept. One was a teenage boy, wearing a T-shirt and jeans, and the other was a teenage girl wearing an expensive-looking skirt. Cast really wouldn't have even known they were interns if he hadn't listened in on some of the Professor's conversations in the past.

He hovered up to the two of them and smiled. However, the female intern's eyes widened in surprise, and she was caught off balance. Cast saw her saying and quickly rushed forward to help pull her back up: but his stubby little "arms" weren't strong enough to hold her, and he actually ended up pushing her down.

The teenaged girl stumbled and fell onto the table, knocking over a few glass vials and causing a large globe to roll off of its pedestal. The male intern ran to chase the rolling globe, but before he could reach it it had crashed into a tripod holding some posters on weather patterns. The tripod toppled over and the heavy posters wafted to the floor, knocking down nearby stools as they swung back and forth. The male intern stepped back, his hand sweeping violently over another table full of glass vials. He knocked over most of them, and the others rolled off of the table and shattered.

In just a few seconds, half of the Weather Institute's first floor had become a complete mess. Many glass shards lay on the tiled ground, sharp and glinting in the sun. The globe had rolled up to the wall, and it was still rolling slightly now. The tripod was on its side, the stools were toppled, and the posters had fallen on top of each other in varied layers.

Having heard the commotion from upstairs, the four scientists came dashing down the stairs. Professor Nimbus was first, and once she saw the mess, her eyes flared with stormy anger. "Look what that _creature_ has done!" she declared.

Professor Cirrus shrank back into a corner, and even Professor Cumulus looked a little lost for words. Professor Stratus was the last one to descend the staircase, and once he did, Nimbus whirled around to meet him, her black curls flying out behind her.

"I told you that you should have never let that Pokemon out if its cage!" Nimbus spat. "It's barely even been ten minutes since we let it out, and look at the damage it's caused!"

"I- It's just a—He's a Pokemon, Pokemon make mistakes!" Stratus stammered.

"Well, if you'd known that, you would have left it in the enclosure where it belongs!" Nimbus replied. She whirled around to face Cast again. "And now I'm going to take this Pokemon _back_ to where it belongs." The tall woman stepped towards Cast, but before she could draw close enough, crackling thunder sounded overheard. Drops of rain descended from the sky, streaming down windowpanes, falling through open windows and clattering on the Weather Institute's roof.

Stratus looked at Cast, who had undoubtedly caused the downpour with Rain Dance. Sure enough, the Pokemon was slowly swaying back and forth, and it had transformed into its Rain Form. It gazed imploringly at Professor Nimbus, who was at a loss for words. However, Nimbus quickly stepped forward again to grab Rain Cast.

The Weather Pokemon darted out of reach and soared across the lab towards one of the open windows.

"No!" Stratus shouted, hurrying after the Pokemon. But it was too late. Without a backwards glance, Rain Cast disappeared out the window and into Fortree Forest. Professor Stratus stood at the window, trying to find out where the Weather Pokemon had gone. But raindrops wetted his hair and blurred his glasses, making it unable for him to see a thing.

By the time he'd stepped away from the window and wiped his spectacles, Rain Cast was gone.

* * *

Cast sat up high in one of the branches of a tree, clinging on with his two stubby white "hands." The rain had subsided hours ago, leaving him back in his normal form, all alone.

He let the early events of that day seep back into his mind: how he'd accidentally caused a mess in the lab, causing Professor Nimbus to shout at him. Hurt and distressed, Cast had flown out the window into the Fortree Woods beyond, where he'd spent the night.

A torrent of emotions flowed through him: he was angry at Professor Nimbus, happy to be out in the wild, but sad for having left the lab. So he just sat in the tree, unsure of himself, and stared out upon the Fortree Woods. The trees loomed up high, and they covered most of the forest in shadow. The grass grew even taller than normal here, tall enough that a young child could get lost in it. Autumn leaves drifted down from the tree branches, swinging in and out of the filtered sunlight.

Cast saw a motherly Swellow off in far-off branches, feeding a tiny Wurmple to her newborn chicks. A few of them had hatched, but one or two eggs were still uncracked and motionless. Cast watched as the mother Swellow hopped off of her branch and took flight, soaring elsewhere in the forest. She was presumably looking for more food to feed her newborn Taillows.

While he waited for her to return, Cast watched the little Taillow chicks. Their dark feathers were wet and downy, their eyes scrunched tightly shut. Their wings were no more than little nubs, and they waddled around blindly. Cast couldn't quite tell if it was cute or disgusting.

The walls of the nest were too high up for the Taillow chicks to hop over, so they simply waddled in place and sat, chirping and squawking for more food. Cast counted three that had hatched already and two eggs.

Cast slowly detached himself from his tree branch and floated over to their tree. Once he was close enough, he landed delicately on the edge of the nest. He was light enough for it to support his weight: after all, he was made of a cotton candy-like consistency.

He noticed that the chicks looked a little cold, since their downy feathers still stuck to their bodies like wet clothes. So he summoned up a warm wind that caressed the Taillows' feathers, drying them slightly and warming them up. The chicks' incessant chirping ceased as they basked in the warm, soothing wind. Cast smiled. Just seeing them so satisfied made him happy again.

* * *

"Are you implying that this was all _my _fault?!" Nimbus asked. She and Stratus were both trudging through the woods, looking for Cast. Professor Cumulus and Professor Cirrus had opted to stay inside and help clean up the mess.

"Oh, for Groudon's sake," Stratus said, throwing his hands up into the air. "You _were_ the one who provoked him!"

"But _you _were at fault for letting him come out to surprise Winnifred and Preston like that!" Nimbus retorted.

"But now, because of your tactless outburst at that poor Pokemon, the result of years of experimenting has disappeared into the wilderness! And I can only imagine the guilt Winnie and Press must be feeling right now! Besides, think of how much hard work down the drain this will be if we can't find Cast! And… he might die!" Professor Stratus responded.

Nimbus scowled and remained silent. Her shoes brushed through the fallen autumn leaves as they continued to search for the Castform. Her long, curly black locks bounced behind her as she took her careless steps. Her white lab coat billowed out behind her. Professor Stratus did have a point… no use letting all the money they'd put into making that creature go to waste.

"Watch out!" Stratus yelped.

Nimbus froze in her tracks. "What?"

"You were about to step on an Oddish! See?" Professor Stratus stepped forward to scoop up the Weed Pokemon from the tall grass. It was young, and small enough to fit in the palm of his hand. The Oddish was fast asleep. It made faint sniffling noises. "I could tell it was an Oddish because its leaves differed from the surrounding grass. You really should be more careful," he chided.

Professor Nimbus frowned but nodded, making a mental note to watch where she stepped. She may have been hasty, but she certainly wasn't heartless. Those Oddish were everywhere: like an invasive species, they permeated every region besides Unova. If they truly had been weeds, Professor Nimbus would have squashed the Oddish without another thought. But even she recognized the value of a Pokemon's life.

She was halfway into another stride when she noticed something white up in the high branches of a tree. "Wait," Nimbus said, squinting her eyes for a better view. Instantly, she was sure of what she saw. "The Castform. It's up in that tree. Happy?"

Stratus nodded, a smile crossing his face. "What's he doing?" he wondered, stepping back to get a better angle.

"….Looks like he's sitting on some sort of nest," Nimbus mused. "Whatever. Just get him down here so we can put him back in the enclosure."

Stratus was about to call up to Cast when something swooped over to the nest. It was a fully grown mother Swellow. The red-breasted bird Pokemon screeched at Castform, widening her wings and landing on a nearby branch. Her two long tail feathers quivered.

Cast's eyes widened once he saw the mother Swellow approach. Her sudden appearance nearly made him lose his balance and fall off of the nest.

_Get away from my babies this instant, _the Swellow squawked. Her sharp talons gripped the tree branch tightly, and Cast could already see those talons gripping his own body just as mercilessly. He gulped: he would have to tread lightly when speaking with this protective mother.

_I was just keeping your babies warm,_ Cast explained. The mother Swellow's eyes narrowed. He couldn't tell if she believed him or not. Cast decided to enlighten her in greater detail. _See, I can alter the weather,_ he explained. _Your chicks looked a little cold, so I summoned a nice little warm breeze to help heat them up and dry them off. I didn't mean any_—

"Cast!" Stratus shouted, waving his arms frantically. "Down here, it's me, Professor Stratus!"

The mother Swellow's eyes darted from Cast to the two professors down below. Then she glanced at Cast again, who looked half-nervous, half-embarrassed. She rolled her eyes. _Alright, I'll let you go,_ she said, relaxing into a calmer pose. She shuffled from side to side a little on the branch. _But if I ever catch you with my babies again…_

_Understood,_ Cast replied quickly. With a hasty smile at Mother Swellow, he hopped off of the nest and came drifting back down into Professor Stratus's outstretched arms. Professor Nimbus stood and watched. Her hands were in the pockets of her lab coat, and she leaned with her weight to one side as she waited. She couldn't help but notice Cast and Stratus' joy upon being reunited again.

"Good to see you again," Professor Stratus said, letting go of Cast after a few seconds. "You really had me worried…" He turned to Professor Nimbus. "Nadia, can't you see how much healthier Cast looks after spending some time out in nature? Of course, there was that Swellow incident, but I'm sure he's learned his lesson, right Cast?" He hadn't been able to understand anything the two of them had been saying up in that tree, but judging from how the mother Swellow was now gently tending to her chicks, Stratus assumed that she and Cast had managed to calmly settle their differences.

Cast nodded, looking hesitantly at Nimbus again to see her reaction. The tall, dark-haired woman looked from Cast to Stratus, and finally sighed. "All right," she declared, throwing her hands up into the air. "He can stay out of his enclosure, so long as you take full responsibility for him and _promise_ to make him more careful." She pointed a finger at Stratus, who nodded in assent.

It was settled. Cast was free of his enclosure. Free to carefully explore the Weather Institute, and free to roam the Fortree Woods. He'd never felt more satisfied.

* * *

**Phew! As you may have noticed, the four professors are all based after cloud types. The intern's names are Winnifred and Preston (just in case you didn't catch them during the chapter). Abbreviated to Winnie and Press, these names are based on Wind and Precipitation. :)**

**From here on out the episodes will be just like a TV show: you'll have the best experience if you read every episode, but it's not the end of the world if you decide to skip a few. Still, don't judge an episode by its cover... some of them start out simple but then become more interesting midway through.**

**Next Week: Episode 2- Hera's Arrival**


	2. S1E2: Hera's Arrival

**SEASON 1**

**Hm. This episode didn't have much action or plot to it, but I still like it all the same. Let's learn more about Precipitation and Wind- excuse me, Press and Winnie, shall we? And who's this mysterious Hera?**

* * *

EPISODE 2: Hera's Arrival

A few days had passed since Cast was finally allowed out of his enclosure. The mess he'd made had been cleaned up so that it was impossible to tell it ever happened. He was now much more cautious when exploring the Weather Institute, and he only made trips out into Fortree Woods once in a while. He'd also managed to gain the trust of Mother Swellow. He was now allowed to see her chicks every now and then, so long as he checked in with her first. One of her two remaining eggs had hatched, but one still remained motionless.

It was another typical day at the Weather Institute when Press arrived with a surprise in his arms. Press was the male intern who Cast had met on his first day of freedom: he was fourteen years old and already studying the path to becoming a meteorologist. His real name was Preston, but he preferred to be called Press. Whenever anybody called him by his real name, he tended to become quite irritated.

"Hey, everybody, look what I found," Press announced. In his arms was a sleeping Skitty. Her eyes were gently shut, her fluffy tail draped over his wrist. Press had a habit of boasting and showing off, coming off as somewhat of a smartaleck.

Winnie was the female intern who Cast had startled on his first day of freedom. She came from a wealthy family living in upper-class Rustboro City; Devon Stone of the Devon Corporation himself was her grandfather, making Steven Stone her uncle. Winnie was all too obsessed with appearances and fashion, dreamy-eyed over boys and easily startled. Her name was short for Winnifred, but, like Press, she preferred to be called Winnie instead. She wasn't even very pleased with the name Winnie and often wished she could change her name completely, but it was too much work: the name had already stuck and nobody would call her anything else.

When Winnie saw the Skitty in Press' arms, her eyes lit up and she stopped what she was doing. Her designer skirt swished about her knees as she hurried over to the Skitty, looking at it like a young girl coveting a brand new toy.

"Hold up!" shouted an authoritative female voice. Press and Winnie whirled around to see Professor Nimbus striding across the floor to meet them. Her long legs quickly took her next to Winnie, where she placed her hands on her hips and glared at the Skitty in Press' arms.

Cast was floating behind Nimbus. He was curious about the pink kitten Pokemon, and what Press was doing with it. He noticed a silver collar around the Pokemon's neck. Something was engraved in the little collar, but he wasn't quite able to read it from such a distance.

Press glanced at Winnie, who was looking at Nimbus rather disdainfully. Winnie had turned up her chin somewhat snootily, and he could tell that the short-tempered Professor wasn't exactly enthused to see Winnifred either. So, Press cleared his throat and piped up to tell his story.

"While I was out in the forest studying humidity today, I stumbled across this lonely little Skitty. She was curled up in a patch of tall grass, fast asleep: just like she is now. She looks rather beat-up, as you can see, so I think she's been living in the wild for a while now." He gestured to the Skitty, and Cast silently agreed with him. The Skitty's fur was dirtied and muddied in places. Some of the fur her stomach and parts of her back looked like it had been ruffled the wrong way, and her eyes were squeezed tightly shut.

Nimbus leaned over slightly for a closer look. "But she's wearing a nametag." She lifted the Skitty from Press' arms. Her hand lifted up the tag dangling beneath the Skitty's collar and she held it up so that it caught the shine from the light fixtures above. "Hera," Professor Nimbus read.

"Yes, _Hera._ That's all it says," Press said. He had crossed his arms somewhat grumpily, upset that Nimbus had snatched the Skitty away from him so easily. "No owner, no address… nothing."

"Yes, but that doesn't mean you can keep the thing," Nimbus said, holding out the Skitty disdainfully. "It might be infected with a disease, its owner might be looking for it… it might even be pregnant! Do you want ten little Skitty kitties running around the Institute? On second thought, don't answer that," Nimbus added once she saw Winnie's eager expression. "We're going to return this Skitty to its rightful owner as soon as possible." With that, Nimbus turned heel with the Skitty in her arms and strode all the back to the 2nd floor stairs.

Press watched with poorly-concealed frustration as Professor Nimbus took the stairs up to the second floor, taking Hera the Skitty with her. Cast chose not to follow Nimbus, instead opting to stay and watch what went on between Press and Winnie.

"Press, how could you let that happen?" Winnie complained, stepping in front of the male intern.

"What do you mean?" Press asked, spreading out his arms in an innocent pose. "The Professor was the one who came an snatched the Skitty! I had nothing to do with it!"

Winnie simply glared at him, and turned around to storm off in a huff. Her sheet of strawberry blonde hair flowed behind her as she made her way to a table on the opposite end of the room.

Press sighed and sat down at a nearby stool. Cast floated down to land at Press's table, looking at the teenage boy with a consoling expression. Press said nothing at first. He took his finger and spun the globe on the table, abruptly stopping it once it was facing the Hoenn Region. Then he slowly circled his finger around the approximate area of the Weather Institute: in the north, up by Fortree City. Finally, he exhaled and slumped over on top of the table.

"I just wanted to show everybody what I'd found," he muttered. "Then Professor Nimbus had to come along and take it away… she already hates me and Winnie for messing up the lab that one time. But it was all your fault," Press said. He glared at Cast, who frowned. A few sprinkling raindrops fell on the Weather Institute's roof, sliding down the windowpanes in tiny little rivulets. Cast slowly morphed into his Rain Form. The light rain was the result of Cast's guilty, apologetic feelings, but Press wasn't aware of it. He just continued to ramble on.

"I don't even think Professor Nimbus realizes how seriously I take this whole internship thing… I mean, most other guys choose to go off on Pokemon adventures and whatnot when they hit their teen and preteen years, but I chose to go into meteorology…. I mean isn't that enough to show her that I'm dedicated to this? Why doesn't she trust me?"

Press was half talking to Rain Cast, half talking to himself. Rain Cast wasn't quite sure what to make of Press' exasperated rant… to be honest, Press wasn't exactly the easiest person to get along with. He was always either boasting about his intelligence and abilities or complaining about why others didn't see things the same way he did. Nimbus, on the other hand, was even more difficult to get along with. She had a short temper and a stormy, tumultuous demeanor. It was no wonder the two didn't get along.

Rain Cast was unsure of what to do. He wanted to lighten up Press's mood, but he wasn't feeling cheerful enough to do the job. So instead, Rain Cast lifted himself up from the table and floated over to Winnie's table. She was sitting at one of the far tables with her legs crossed defiantly. She held a pencil in her hand like she was working on something, but Rain Cast could see once he drew closer that she hadn't written anything.

In actuality, Winnie was steaming. "I can't believe Professor Nimbus would do that," she complained. She tried to twirl the pencil in the air but abruptly dropped it. The pencil clattered on the table and rolled onto the floor. Winnie sighed, not bothering to take the effort to pick it up. Instead, she smoothed out her designer skirt and kept talking.

"Can't anybody see how miserable I am here?" she whined. "I never _asked_ to come her and study the weather: it was my stupid parents. I never wanted to go to on a Pokemon journey, so they just stuck me here as a default. Why couldn't Professor Nimbus just at least let that Skitty stay here to keep me company?" She groaned and dug her fingers into her perfect, reddish-blond hair.

Rain Cast floated away, finally stopping at the center of the room, hovering at equal distances from the two. Both of the interns certainly had their complaints… But, to be honest, he was more interested in Hera the Skitty's future than what they had to say. What would become of the lost Kitten Pokemon?

Almost as if on cue, Professor Stratus came walking down the stairs with Professors Nimbus and Cirrus trailing behind him. Cirrus was now holding Hera in her arms, stroking her ruffled fur down to smooth it out. Nimbus had her arms folded, and Stratus just looked tired.

"It's been decided," he said after catching Press and Winnie's attention. "We're going to return this Skitty back to its rightful owner."

* * *

**Yeah, so not much happened here (it's kind of just an intro to the next episode. Still working on that whole individual-plot thing). But I do think we got some useful insight into the personalities of Press and Winnie (or should I say, Precipitation and Wind? Or Preston and Winnifred? Ugh, too confusing!) Anyways, the next episode will hopefully have better pacing. I still only have one review (plus one non-member review), so REVIEW if you want that next chapter to come out sooner! **

**Next Week: Episode 3- Flipping Out in Fortree**


	3. S1E3: Flipping Out in Fortree

**SEASON 1**

**This episode will probably make more sense if you read the previous one first. Anyways, this episode takes place in my second-favorite Pokemon city of all time (Pacifidlog being the first). Enjoy!**

* * *

EPISODE 3: Flipping out in Fortree

Branches that scraped the sky. Tree trunks as thick as a car is wide. Treehouses built impossibly large, suspended in the air. Rope bridges up in the treetops that filtered light into a criss-crossed pattern on the forest floor.

Fortree City.

A gray van with a stylized Hoenn region map on the side drove along the bumpy, unpaved road into the city. The words "Weather Institute" were printed along the doors in bolded letters, and various types of weather equipment were mounted to the top of the van. But this time, the van wasn't here to study the weather.

After slowing the vehicle to a complete stop, Professor Cumulus stepped out of the car. The rotund professor took in a deep breath of Fortree City's fresh forest air, straining the buttons on his lab coat as he did so. He smiled broadly, but that smile quickly turned into a fearful, wide-mouthed expression once he saw the treehouses up so high in the air.

Professor Cirrus was the second to exit the van. Her small, thin frame stepped out from the car, gently closing the door behind her. Professor Cirrus had wispy hair that was light brown in color. Her hair fell down to her waistline, ending in uneven strands no matter how neatly she tried to cut them. She was the youngest of the four professors, being only 31 years of age. Normally Professor Cirrus was the quiet, reserved type, but this was certainly not the case in Fortree City. After all, this place was her hometown. Just being here made her smile.

However, Cirrus quickly saw that Professor Cumulus didn't feel the same way. "What's wrong?" she asked after noticing his worried face.

Cumulus tried to put on a false smile, simply waving the topic away with a laugh. "Oh, it's… it's nothing."

"If you say so." Cirrus knew that something was up, but she decided not to confront Professor Cumulus at the moment. After all, they had a task to complete.

Press came out of the van next, with Cast floating behind him. Hera the Skitty was still in the van, sound asleep. Whenever anybody saw her, she seemed to be sleeping. They deducted that she must be either waking up during the nighttime, or thoroughly exhausted.

Press was holding a stack of posters that he'd printed out the previous night. The words "SKITTY FOUND" were printed in all caps, along with a picture he'd taken of Hera and the Weather Institute's address. They would be putting up these posters all around Fortree City to find out who Hera's owner was.

Professor Cirrus led the way, with Cumulus and Press following behind her. Cast decided he would stay back to take care of Hera and watch the van.

Professor Cirrus grabbed hold of one of the ropes hanging from the tree branches, managing to hoist herself up. It had been a while since the timid Professor had lived here in lush Fortree City, but her climbing instincts were already flooding back. Her wispy hair trailed behind her as she carefully scaled the rope ladder.

Press went after her, grabbing onto the ladder's rungs and climbing up. He wasn't the most athletic teenager (though he liked to pretend he was) but even he was able to safely make it up the ladder to the wooden platform at the top with the posters tucked under his arm.

Cumulus looked nervous. "It's okay, it'll be fine!" Press shouted from atop the wooden platform. "It's easy!"

Professor Cumulus still looked hesitant, but he decided to start his ascent. He placed a foot on the bottom rung of the rope ladder, pulling down the rope significantly. Next, he hoisted his ample frame up onto the rope, trying not to look down as he worked his way, step by step, up the ladder. By the time he made it to the top, his cheeks were red and he was sweating profusely.

Press and Cirrus had already gotten to work, dashing across Fortree's rope bridges and nailing up posters to tree trunks. Some people were coming out to ask them what this was all about, and Press was happy to explain.

Cirrus noticed that Cumulus was looking a little pale, so she tiptoed across the rope bridge to meet him. "Is something wrong?" she asked in her quiet voice.

"Oh, it's just…" Cumulus gulped. "It's just that this city is a little high up. It's a pretty far drop down to the forest floor below. Most of the people here seem to pretty fit from climbing around all the time and breathing this fresh forest air, but… do you really think a skinny little rope bridge like that could someone as…heavy as me?"

Cirrus smiled and nodded after Cumulus's uneasy rambling. "Don't worry, Fortree city is more structurally sound than it looks. Those rope bridges could hold a fully grown Camerupt without a problem." Cumulus still looked hesitant to step onto the bridge, so Cirrus offered him her small, delicate hand. He held it, stepping onto the bridge with his other hand tightly gripping the rope handrail. Cumulus kept his eyes on Cirrus, trying hard not to look down as she led him across the bridge.

Hoever, his foot suddenly slipped through one of the tiny gaps in the bridge. He let out a yelp as part of his leg went through, causing him to look down at the dizzying drop below. Professor Cumulus's eyes rolled skywards, and he lost he balance, swaying to one side of the bridge!

Cirrus's eyes widened as the bridge rocked under Cumulus's weight, leaning over to one side as the rope bridge tipped slightly. The bridge was twisting dangerously to one side, and she was struggling to keep her grip on Cumulus's hand. Suddenly, his hand slipped out from hers, and the entire rope bridge flipped over. Cumulus was hanging on only by his foot, and Cirrus was left scrambling to hold onto the rope rungs for dear life.

"You said these bridges could hold a fully grown Camerupt!" Cumulus shouted as blood rushed to his head.

Cirrus opted not to respond. Instead she swung across the rungs like monkey bars, wobbling precariously here and there. Her long hair would get in her face every now and then, but all she had to do was shake her head to get it out of her eyes. "Don't worry," she said once she reached him, although she was fairly scared herself. In all her years living in Fortree City, nothing like this had happened. But Cumulus's foot was wedged pretty tightly between the rungs, so she doubted he would fall.

Professor Cirrus helped Cumulus bend up to grab onto the rope rungs above. Together, they swung back and forth until the bridge finally flipped over right-side up. Cumulus gasped in air as his face regained its normal color, and Cirrus helped him yank his foot out from between the rungs.

Cumulus looked like he was about to have an outburst at Cirrus, but decided against it. Instead, he simply managed to sputter out two words: "Thank you."

* * *

Back at the van, Cast turned around to see Cumulus, Cirrus, and Press all walking back to the van empty-handed. They'd put up all of the posters they'd had: now all they could do was wait. Press looked tired, but not as exhausted as Cumulus, who was still red in the face.

The three humans loaded into the car, and Cast sat in the back seat with Hera. He watched the little pink Pokemon sleep peacefully. Her body rose and fell slightly with each breath. Her eyes were closed into little black crescents and her tiny nose twitched every now and then. The three little whisker-like hairs on her tail quivered as the van bounced along the bumpy road, and suddenly, Hera's eyes opened.

She looked around. Professor Cumulus had his eyes on the road; Cirrus and Press were busy watching the scenery go by. The only one who noticed her wake up was Cast.

_Where am I?_ she wondered. She straightened her body into an upright position, yawning and batting her nose a little.

Cast was pleasantly surprised. Hera was awake! _We're just coming back from Fortree City,_ he replied cheerfully. _I'm Cast! _He floated over to her, bobbing up and down in a form of polite greeting. The last thing he wanted to do was frighten the drowsy little Skitty, so he didn't come too close.

Hera smiled, blinking twice. _Nice to meet you, Cast. My name is Hera. How long have I been asleep for?_

_A while,_ Cast admitted. _Once we get back to the Weather Institute, I'll show you around. There are some people and Pokemon I'd like you to meet!_

* * *

**And so ends Episode 3. That was some nice Cirrocumulus, don't you think? I think I'm starting to get a hold of how the pacing should go, even though it's still not perfect.**

**The fourth episode is definitely looking like it'll be my most well-written one yet. Good, length, good pacing, good everything! :D And as always…. please review! Reviews are what give me the fantastic urge to keep on writing, plus, they sometimes cause me to give out bonus updates! ;)**

**Next Week: Episode 4- Picking the Perfect Pokeblock**


	4. S1E4: Picking the Perfect Pokeblock

**SEASON 1**

**Early Update! You can thank OldRivalShipper, because thanks to her review, you get to read this chapter early. (And I'll still update on Saturday like I always do, only now everything will get shifted forward by one chapter.) **

**Anyways, I'm really proud of this chapter: I think I've finally got a hold of the pacing and how long the episodes should be.**

* * *

EPISODE 4: Picking the Perfect Pokeblock

_Mmm, what's cooking? _Cast exclaimed as he drifted down the staircase. It had been a few days since they'd found Hera the lost Skitty, but they still hadn't gotten any response from the posters they'd put up in Fortree City. Nobody minded very much: Hera had fit into their close-knit family here at the Weather Institute. She was very popular with Winnie, who would spend hours cleaning her fur and watching her play.

Cast quickly found his answer after floating over to the kitchen. The kitchen was a small concaved area of the first floor: still open to the main room, but set apart enough to feel like its own separate space. An oven, a counter, and a few stoves were evenly spaced around the kitchen walls. Hera sat on one of the countertops, her big pink tail waving back and forth. Winnie and Stratus stood at the stoves, each of them wearing aprons.

Winnie turned around once she saw Castform approaching. "Oh, hi there!" she said, reaching out a hand to pet the little Weather Pokemon. "Look, Professor, Cast is here!"

Professor Stratus turned around, looking somewhat sheepish in his apron. _I can explain,_ his expression seemed to say."Hello… Winnifred was trying to feed Hera earlier, but I'm afraid this Skitty's somewhat of a picky eater. We couldn't find the right Pokeblock that fits her tastes, so Winnifred enlisted me to help her cook the perfect Pokeblock. I admit, I'm somewhat of a chef, but this task is turning out to be a little more difficult than expected."

A pot was bubbling on the stove, filled with clear water. When Cast floated over to get a closer look, he was able to see two squarish blocks of food at the bottom of the pot: one was hot pink, one was lime green.

The two humans turned back to their work, and Cast glanced at Hera. _Why don't you just tell them what Pokeblock you like? Pantomime it or something?_

Hera smiled somewhat mischievously. _What, and ruin all the fun? Besides, I never was any good at charades!_ She laughed, licking her paw and hopping off of the counter. She landed on the floor, then rolled over onto her back. Curling her tail up into the air, she batted it like a play toy. _You should try cooking with them,_ she told Cast. _It looks like fun. There are some recipes on the counter: try one out!_

_Uh, no thanks,_ Cast said. He shook his head _I'm not really much of a cook._ But after some encouragement from Hera, he finally decided to give it a shot. Cast floated up to the counter, where a cookbook lay open to a page called "How to Cook your Own Pokeblock." The first step involved finding some berries and mashing them all together. Cast's eyes darted around as he searched for the ingredients he'd need… then he spotted them. A large, transparent jar bursting with ripe, juicy berries.

Already salivating a bit, Cast floated over to the jar. He seized the jar's cap between his two sphere-like appendages and pulled. But the cap wouldn't budge. He tried again, pulling with all his might: and the jar's cap popped open, causing the berries inside to flood out and the jar to clatter to the floor. Cast was caught in the berry avalanche, landing on the floor amidst the colorful catastrophe.

Hera smiled, leaping over to Cast and chasing after Pomeg berry. In her playful haste, she accidentally ended up stepping on most of the berries. The floor was covered in fruit stains by the time she had the Pomeg berry lodged safely between her teeth.

A berry stain was left on the floor for each step Hera had taken. Professor Stratus was cringing as the whole ordeal took place. Each time. Winnie, on the other hand, looked delighted to see Hera having so much fun.

"Come on, Winnie," Stratus said, putting his arm on the girl's shoulder. "We'll have to go into the basement and get the supplies needed to clean up the mess. Not to mention see if we can find some more berries…"

Winnie's cheery express seamlessly transformed into one of defiance. "No way am I cleaning up that mess," she said. She tilted her chin upwards and strode away, leaving Stratus all alone. With an exasperated huff, Stratus walked the opposite way and out of the kitchen, almost slipping on some berry juice as he left.

_Winnie's kind of a brat, isn't she_? Cast said as he nibbled on a berry.

_But she gives the best backrubs,_ Hera said.

Cast looked around at the mess they'd caused. _You know, we did kind of cause this mess… maybe we should apologize somehow. _

Hera looked somewhat sheepish. _You're right,_ she said. _I didn't mean to step on all the berries… it's just I've never tasted a Pomeg before, and I got a little carried away trying to chase it. Turns out they don't even taste that great after all_. She spat out a little bit of the berry's skin after fishing it out from between her tiny teeth. _Hey! _Hera said, suddenly getting an idea. _I know how we can make it up to them!_ she bounded over to Cast, whispering something in his ear.

He grinned. A shining ray of light fell from the nearest window, causing him to turn into his Sun Form. _Let's do it!_ Sun Cast said with glee. The form change had altered his mood drastically.

First they turned off the stove so the two Pokeblocks already inside wouldn't become overcooked. Sun Cast checked the recipe and preheated the oven while Hera scavenged for just the right type of berry. Sun Cast floated up to the cupboard and managed to carefully bring out a giant bowl humming cheerfully as he worked. He held it in his mouth as he pushed the cupboard shut. Hera washed her paws thoroughly before dropping the berries into the bowl and dancing all over them.

_Come on!_ she said as she mashed the berries into a paste. _It's fun!_

Cast, still in his ecstatic Sun form, quickly agreed. He dropped into the bowl, cannon ball-style. Hera laughed as his impact squirted berry juice all over her face, and she responded by flicking some of the berry paste his way. By the time they were done frolicking in the bowl, the berries had been thoroughly mashed and the oven was ready.

Hera scooped out some of the berry mush with her paws and laid it on the counter. She gently patted it together, forming into a square shape. Sun Cast went down to one of the lower cupboards and slid out a tray for her to cook it on. Hera placed the uncooked Pokeblock on the tray and the two of them lifted it into the oven.

After three minutes, it was time to take it out. But neither of them wanted to burn themselves, so for a while they just sat there, unsure of what to do. Suddenly, they heard footsteps. Professor Stratus was coming out of the basement with a mop!

_You distract him!_ Sun Cast hissed as he shifted back to his normal form.

Hera nodded, quickly leaping over down the stairs to the basement. Meanwhile, Cast scanned the kitchen frantically. He quickly found a large two-pronged fork and gripped it tightly, using it to drag the Pokeblock out of the oven. Balancing the hot Pokeblock on the edge of the fork, he dropped it into the pot on the stove and turned on the heat again.

Professor Stratus soon arrived, with Hera jumping around playfully in front of him. She was batting at his feet, wiggling her tail at him: anything to stall time. Luckily, Cast's task had already been completed.

_Mission accomplished, _Cast told her with a wink.

Meanwhile, Professor Stratus was busying himself by cleaning up the floor and mumbling to himself about Winnie's impudence. In a few minutes the floor was spotless. Stratus laid the mop up against the wall and checked the pot. Two Pokeblocks had floated to the top of the water, which meant they were done cooking. The third Pokeblock, which Cast and Hera had made, was still submerged.

"Now," Stratus said, gently picking up one of the Pokeblock with a spoon, "No need letting all of our work. I'm not going to wear the apron, just to spare my dignity, but….let's see how you like this." He fed the hot pink Pokeblock to Hera, who nibbled at it with her kitten teeth. Hera made a face, and spat out the food instantly.

Stratus frowned, but simply resorted to the next type of Pokeblock, which was colored bright lime. But when he tried to feed it to Hera, he was met with the same result. Stratus was about to give up when he heard the last Pokeblock bob up to the surface.

The final Pokeblock was a plain blue color. It was the same hue of blue that one might find in a standard box of crayons: nothing special about it whatsoever. For a moment Professor Stratus just looked at the Pokeblock, trying to remember if he'd ever baked this particular one. Shrugging, he scooped it up with a spoon and put it up to Hera's mouth.

Hera winked at Cast, and at first pretended to be disdainful of the ordinary Pokeblock. However, she soon took a little nibble, and smiled with delight. She then proceeded to happily eat up the entire Pokeblock, licking her lips and mewing happily.

Professor Stratus was shocked. He quickly flipped through the Pokeblock recipe book, looking for the ingredients that matched the Pokeblock he'd seen. Finally, he found the page.

"Oran berries?!" Stratus exclaimed incredulously. "Here we were, trying out all of these fancy recipes, when the one you liked all along was the simplest Pokeblock of them all!"

Hera grinned and looked at Cast. _Seriously though, they never did think of giving me an Oran Pokeblock! _

Cast laughed in return.

"Well, I'll bet you're starving after waiting so long for Winnie and me to find the perfect Pokeblock, right?" Stratus said, playfully rubbing Hera's little ears. "Well, let's get cooking!"

And together, the three of them made an entirely new batch of Oran Pokeblock to satiate Hera's appetite. Sun shone through the window again, turning Cast back into his gleeful Sun form: and that cheerful mood was reflected in Stratus and Hera's attitudes for the rest of the day. Winnie never did come back to the kitchen that day, most likely out of the fear that she would still have to clean up the mess that Hera and Cast had initially made. But nobody minded. Hera, Cast, and Professor Stratus were too busy crafting their culinary masterpieces.

* * *

**This episode and the one before it are definitely my favorite episodes so far. You can probably expect this to be the length of all chapters to come, and the style as well. I'm so happy, I've finally got everything figured out! **

**Next Week: Episode 5- An Open Mind**


	5. S1E5: An Open Mind

**SEASON 1**

**Thanks to everybody for the sudden spurt in reviews! I read every one (speaking of which, no, despite the name this chapter will not have anything to do with psychic types :P) and I always make sure to take note of the reviewer's opinions. Plus, they spark me to write awesome episodes like this one!**

* * *

EPISODE 5: An Open Mind

Nimbus dashed out the sliding doors of the Weather Institute, holding a clipboard and a pen to her chest. She was always perfectly punctual for the morning weather check, and she wasn't about to let her perfect record be stained now. She was Professor Nimbus after all, and nobody expected anything less of her than perfection. At least, that was how she saw things.

She looked up to the sky and clicked her pen matter-of-factly. The sky was a beautiful, baby blue color. Not a single cloud graced the heavenly dome above, but there was no need: the open sky was beautiful on its own, flawless and soothing to the eye. No bird Pokemon fluttered across the air either; no, the cyan world above was blissfully, wonderfully empty, perfect for letting the mind wander.

Of course, Nimbus didn't have time to marvel in such trivial things. Sitting and staring was for the weak of mind.

Instead, she simply wrote N/A neatly under the sections of her clipboard labeled "Cloud Type" and "Cloud Cover" without even taking a second glance at the sky. She proceeded to check the thermometer and barometer on the side of the building in a very businesslike manner. 75 degrees Fahrenheit… to some it would be the mark of a perfect day, but to her it was just a number to be recorded.

After collecting all of the visual data she could, Nimbus headed back into the Weather Institute to collect the more analytical information, such as humidity levels, wind speed and direction, and so on. She knew that similar, smaller weather stations all around Hoenn would be recording their data as well. If things were going according to schedule, they would have already sent their reports over to the central computer where they could be assembled for Internet broadcasting.

Twenty-five minutes left until 7:00, her deadline… early, as usual. Satisfied with herself, Nimbus headed up the stairs to the second floor, where she could record all of the results to be sent out to the rest of Hoenn.

However, once she arrived at the top she stopped in her tracks. Somebody was standing at the desk of laboratory equipment, just staring at the central screen. The person turned around, and Nimbus immediately recognized it to be Professor Stratus.

He attempted to smile once he saw her, but he just couldn't seem to manage. His hair was ruffled and his eyes seemed lost, stressed out.

Nimbus checked the clock. She still had time before she had to get in her report. Might as well listen to what the sorry-looking professor had to say.

"Why the long face?" she said, more of a demand than a question. She set her clipboard down on a nearby table and folded her arms in front of her.

Stratus shrugged, and gaze drifting out to the window. "Nothing…. really, I mean it. It's nothing. The nothingness is the reason. Just…. having nothing to do, you know?"

Nimbus stared at him with dubious eyes. "No, I don't know. Enlighten me, would you?"

"It's Cast," Stratus began. "It's just… he's finally completed now. And now that's really, truly registering with me. The experiment was a total success, and we finally created a Pokemon based on the weather. My life seems empty now. My mind is cluttered, I'm worried, I just need something to fill the space with so my thoughts are doing the filling. I guess this all started years ago. When I first started getting into meteorology…"

_A young Professor Stratus stood on a college campus, holding a textbook and a notebook in one arm. His hair was a little longer, and a pencil was placed in his ear: after all, he had been known to be a little scatterbrained, and that was the only place he could keep a pencil without losing it._

_Still, young Stratus was nowhere near as scatterbrained as the man standing before him. Glasses slightly askew, hair thoroughly rumpled, but with an excited gleam in his eyes._

_The two of them conversed casually while standing in a plaza dotted with sprouting saplings. Students walked past every now and then, casually making their way towards their classes, but other than that, the two of them were alone._

_After talking for some time about majors and minors, the college experience, how life was going, and other topics, the scatterbrained man looked to the skies. "A beautiful day, isn't it, Solomon?"_

_Young Solomon Stratus looked up. All he could see was a vast expanse of blue._

"_But there's no clouds," Stratus said, "And no wind. How can a day be beautiful without anything to adorn it?"_

_The scatterbrained professor chuckled. "I can see why you'd think that, but consider this: an empty sky is often more beautiful than the most decorative artwork in the world. Gazing at an elaborate piece of art or a cloud-filled sky will keep your mind busy for eternity: discovering patterns or discerning unseen images is quite occupying. But an empty sky is an open mind. It drains out all thought, leaving you in a simple bliss, similar to meditation. A clouded sky may be flashier, but an empty sky is humble… and it is beautiful all the same."_

_The young Stratus could do nothing but nod. He let his eyes linger, looking at the open sky. He let his mind slowly drain itself of all worries, just basking in the cool bliss of the bright white sun against the cool blue sky. He smiled._

"_Say, Solomon…" the eccentric professor said. "You do seem to have a… knack for this sort of thing. As you may know, I specialize in meteorology… perhaps you would consider taking one of my courses? The weather, and the world around us and above us are often more amazing than people expect, and you seem to understand that."_

"_I'll think about it," Young Stratus replied, still never taking his eyes off of the sky._

"And I did end up joining his class," Stratus continued. "I was actually so intrigued that I ended up switching majors. But all the while when I was studying meteorology, I always wanted to find a way to link it even more directly to the world around us. After hearing about the successful experiment in Kanto to create the artificial Pokemon called Porygon, I had made up my mind. I would make a Pokemon that would not only change with the weather, but be able to influence it too.

"Most of the other students in my class dismissed it as impossible, but my professor never lost hope in me." Stratus continued. "He died shortly after my graduation for numerous health reasons, and ever since then, all I could think about was making that Pokemon, proving both him and myself right. Even after co-founding the Weather Institute, I still could never seem to shake that goal. It was always front and center.

"But now…" Professor Stratus sighed. "I've achieved the goal. I've achieved the goal that I've been working towards for over ten years now. And… now there's nothing. I have nothing to do, and my mind is whirling, seeking, starving for something to do."

Nimbus nodded. She had felt somewhat of an emptiness after helping to create Castform, but it had faded away in a matter of days, and she knew that it couldn't compare to what Stratus must be feeling now.

"I understand," she said in an uncharacteristically softer voice. I remember when I was younger, I had wanted to be a model." She shook her head, laughing at her foolishness. "How stupid it would have been, for me to just throw away my gifted brain like that and go into modeling. But my heart was set on it…"

_A younger Nimbus sat at a desk. Her fingers flew across the paper, taking notes in a blur, but still somehow managing to write in perfect, legible handwriting. She looked nearly identical to her present appearance, only just slightly shorter and with a somewhat younger face. Despite this, she still had that same determined look, those same curly locks. She was in her junior year of high school, never faltering from straight A's._

_Then: Another Nimbus, only a few months later. Her curly hair had been straightened into one, long black sheet, and she posed for a camera. Dolled up with makeup, she only slightly resembled her former self. _

_Young Nimbus had been trying to become recognized as a model, but nothing seemed to work; she never got a chance to step into the spotlight. Oh, how she wanted the name Nadia Nimbus to show up in households everywhere, but it just wasn't happening. And her grades were suffering too: as gifted a scholar as she was, the more time she put into her appearance, the less time she was able to put into her academics._

_Nevertheless, Nimbus was determined to find some way to shine. It took her a while to realize that her desire to be on the cover of a magazine or on a television screen was actually hazardous to her quality of life: if she wasn't careful, she might end up becoming dangerously thin, and her grades could drop even further. _

_So despite her wishes, young Nadia Nimbus dropped her goal to become a model. The straightened hair vanished, replaced by her normal curls. Her grades evened back out to consistent A's again, and she was content with who she was._

"… And I'd originally gotten into meteorology as somewhat of a half-hearted attempt to finally get my wish of showing up on television screens," Nimbus explained. "I suppose I wanted to be a weather forecaster, but I quickly learned that it just wasn't my calling. Behind the scenes work was my duty, and I do it even now."

Stratus nodded, and Nimbus continued to speak.

"So, I suppose that what I'm trying to say is… Everybody has goals, but sometimes those goals change, and sometimes they can take a while to discover," she said. "You're lucky that you succeeded in your goal, and you should truly cherish that before moving on. You said that your brain is whirling with thoughts, unsure of what to do, but starving for a task. Well… I think it might be a good idea to take a page out of your old college professor's book…. After all, the sky is empty today."

A few seconds after hearing Nimbus's words, Professor Stratus turned around to look out the window. The first thing he saw was Cast and Hera playing around down on the front lawn. Then he looked to the sky.

Nimbus was right: nothing but blue as far as the eye could see. He stared into that blue, letting his troubles and worries slowly drift away. Finally, they had all vanished: all except that image of Cast and Hera playing on the lawn. He focused on Cast, letting the proof of his accomplishments truly sink in. Then, he even let that fade away.

And finally, Professor Stratus had an open mind.

He smiled, and nodded to Professor Nimbus. She nodded in return. The two of them simply stood there for a full minute, Stratus reveling in the sky while Nimbus looked on, wishing she could bring herself to do the same.

Then Stratus spoke.

"By the way, you're five minutes late for your weather report."

Professor Nimbus let out a gasp of alarm, and rushed over to broadcast her results through the computer as quickly as possible. Stratus laughed. Would she ever learn to loosen up?

* * *

**Man, I love this episode. This is like, the deepest thing I've ever written. XD So naturally, I had to lighten it up a little at the end. Please review and tell me what you think.**

**Next Week: Episode 6- Freeze Tag**


	6. S1E6: Freeze Tag

**SEASON 1**

**I think that one of the most fun parts of this fic is restraining myself to writing such a minimal amount of text per episode, yet still trying to convey some good imagery and detail. It's challenging, and it's something that I've enjoyed trying to do. This episode ended up being the longest so far, but then again, that's just more Castform Chronicles for you to enjoy!**

* * *

EPISODE 6: Freeze Tag

Cast was in a peaceful mood. He was giving Hera the Skitty her first official tour of the Fortree Woods. She was still living with them in the Weather Institute, seeing as how nobody from Fortree City had claimed her as their lost Skitty yet. It was noon, and the glistening sun shone gently through the tree leaves. Hera padded silently along the mossy forest floor, alert and curious to all of the sounds, smells and sights around her.

_And there's Mother Swellow's nest,"_ Cast said, nodding up towards one of the tree branches. Hera's squinted eyes looked skyward, and she soon noticed the nest resting in the tree. Cast noticed that Hera was interested, so he added, _We could always check in on the Taillow chicks if you want, but in order for us to do that, the mother would have to-_

Almost as if on cue, a giant bird swooped overhead, casting Hera in Cast in momentary shadow before landing on a low hanging tree branch. The bird was Mother Swellow herself. She had gained much respect for Cast over the past week, and the two of them were now able to hold comfortable conversations every now and then.

_Cast, you've arrived just in time,_ Mother Swellow said in a relaxed, yet crisp tone. She preened her wing feathers slightly and shuffled her wings. _I know this is a little sudden, but I have an… appointment to make with a certain male Swellow. It's been a long time since my mate passed away, and I was really looking forward to spending time with this new male, but I'm afraid I can't leave my chicks all alone while I'm gone. Would you mind-_

_Consider it done,_ Cast declared. _Hera and I will take care of your chicks, no problem!_

Mother Swellow looked relieved. _Thank you so much. I should be back well before evening, so you won't have to worry about taking care of them for too long. I've already fed them, so just make sure they don't get into any trouble._ With that, she spread her wings and took off. Cast and Hera watched as she dipped gracefully beneath branches and around trees, finally swerving out of sight.

Cast floated up to the branch with the nest on it, and Hera did her best to try and climb the tree trunk. She unsheathed her tiny claws and hopped up onto the tree, scrabbling at the bark and pulling herself slowly up the wide tree trunk. It was difficult work, but in a few seconds she arrived at the branch with Cast and the nest.

These Taillows were no longer the tiny, wet chicks that Cast had once known them to be. Their bodys were now covered in fluffy black down, and they had grown a little since Cast had first seen them. Hera peered at the nest with obvious interest, and quickly noticed the motionless egg in the corner.

Cast saw what she was doing and said, _That egg still hasn't hatched. Mother Swellow says that she did lay that one last of all, but still, she's a little worried. Since the chicks are getting more active, they might end up jostling it around or breaking it. And if it doesn't hatch soon… well, that might also be a sign that the chick inside might be dead._

Hera frowned. _Really?_ she mewed. "That's so sad…" The Skitty jumped daintily into the nest, prodding the egg gently with a paw. However, when she turned around, her large pink tail knocked into the egg with full force, sending it toppling over the edge of the nest!

Cast's eyes widened and he zoomed down towards the egg as it tumbled through the air. He quickly positioned himself beneath it, letting it push against his body and slowly decelerating its descent. Cast finally managed to slow to a halt just before touching the ground.

After placing the egg gently on the ground, Cast was about to let out a sigh of relief. But before he could, he heard a shriek from up in the nest. He looked up, and to his shock, saw two baby Taillows falling from the nest, squawking and flapping their miniature wings eagerly in an attempt to fly. Cast hurried over as quickly as he could, but it was too late. The two Taillows collided with the ground, then popped back up, tottering around in opposite directions.

Cast didn't have time to follow them: instead he floated back up to the nest, where he'd heard Hera's yowl come from. The little Skitty was cowering at the edge of the nest as the two remained Taillow chirped and screeched at her, trying desperately to scrabble up the edges of the nest so they could meet their siblings down on the forest floor.

_You were supposed to watch them!_ Cast shouted at Hera.

_It's not my fault, what was I supposed to do?_ she replied. _I can't fly like you can!_

Before Cast could respond, one of the Taillows bumped into him as it leapt out of the nest. Like an expert skydiver, the little chick was falling with style: and it was taking Cast with it. The two of them plummeted down to meet the ground with a thud. The little chick quickly hopped off of Cast and frolicked off to explore the forest.

By now, Cast was furious. The egg had almost fallen and shattered into a million pieces, the chicks had jumped out of the nest and were now scattered all around the area, and Hera was to blame! His anger couldn't be disguised, and a chilly wind whipped through the forest. Leaves were chilled to the point of becoming brittle, and in an instant Cast had morphed into Snow Cast.

Hera jumped from the high branch and landed on the ground below. She stumbled a little, but managed to safely land on both feet. _Listen Cast, I'm sorry, but-_

_I don't have time to hear it,_ Snow Cast spat. When he changed forms, his mood swings were drastic: from giddy with joy in his Sun Form to dejected in depression in his Rain Form to infuriated with anger in his Snow Form. _I'll search the woods and find the four Taillow chicks that wandered off. You stay here and watch the egg until we find a way to get it back into the next._

Hera nodded, looking somewhat frightened. She'd never seen Cast in any other form but his Sun Form until now, and seeing him as Snow Cast scared her slightly. She nodded and scampered over to the egg, sitting next to it diligently.

Meanwhile, Snow Cast was blowing through the woods on a chilled breeze, scanning the forest floor frantically as he searched for the Taillow chicks. He had no patience at the moment, and he needed to round up the chicks as soon as possible before Mother Swellow came back to the nest.

It wasn't difficult to find the first Taillow, since it hadn't managed to wander very far. The little chick was tottering along at a slow speed, and Snow Cast sprinkled some Powder Snow on the Taillow as he flew by. The glistening icy particles descended on the chick, freezing it instantly.

Snow Cast wasn't worried about harming the Taillow in any way: he knew that Powder Snow's temporary freezing effects were in no way harmful, and that Taillow would thaw out after a while. Hopefully by that time Snow Cast would have managed to freeze all of the other chicks as well in order to come around and collect them all afterwards.

The woods whizzed by as Snow Cast traveled, leaving a chilly wind in his wake. Eyes squinted into slits, he scanned the forest impatiently. Then, suddenly… he froze. Something was rustling down in the tall grass.

Snow Cast inhaled a deep lungful of air and exhaled in the form of an Icy Wind. The grass was blown aside, exposing the little Taillow chick inside. The Taillow was frozen solid, and Snow Cast moved on.

Only two more Tailows left to find… Snow Cast surveyed the forest, letting his pace slow down a little. He wandered for at least another thirty minutes, his frustration slowly rising as the time ticked on.

Then, he spotted them. _How in the world did they get over there!?_

The two remaining Taillow chicks were perched precariously on a fallen branch that hung over a swift-running stream. The Taillows were chirping joyfully and hopping up and down every now and then. Each time they would almost slip, causing Snow Cast to have a pseudo-heart attack.

He slowly floated down to the ground, making sure not to scare them off of the branch and into the water. Instead, he picked a few berries from some nearby bushes and laid them on dry land. The first Taillow happily hopped over the branch and onto the ground, tiptoeing towards the tasty berries and nibbling at them heartily.

The other Taillow made his way towards the berries as well, but one of his talons slipped. His wings shot out to both sides, wobbling desperately in an attempt to keep balance: but to no avail. The Taillow tumbled down towards the stream!

Snow Cast sent and Icy Wind breezing its way, causing the Taillow to freeze in midair before plopping into the stream and bobbing back up again. Snow Cast sighed with relief: The ice's low density compared to water was the only reason that the little Taillow had bobbed back to the surface instead of sinking to the bottom of the river.

After sprinkling some powder snow on the Taillow who was eating the berries, Snow Cast headed after the Taillow in the stream. Frozen within a thin layer of ice, the little bird Pokemon was sent down the current. Snow Cast managed to grip one of the Taillow's frozen wings between his two round "hands," and managed to lift the Pokemon out of the water. He set the dripping, frozen Taillow down on the ground, letting out a sigh of relief and finally morphing back into his normal form.

* * *

_Listen, I'm sorry about snapping at you back there,_ Cast said to Hera. _I just can't always control when and where I change forms._

The two of them had been able to drag the frozen Taillows back to their home tree, waiting for them to thaw out before Cast carefully lifted each of them back up to the nest. Cast had also managed to scoop up the egg with his body and lift it back into the nest. All of Mother Swellow's babies were safe. Sitting up on a slightly higher branch, Cast and Hera were able to look down every now and then to check on the Taillow chicks. They didn't really have much to worry about: the chicks were thoroughly tired, and they were in no state to be climbing out of the nest again.

Soon Mother Swellow returned. She seemed very pleased with her excursion, telling Cast and Hera that she may have just found a new mate for herself.

Suddenly, in mid-sentence, Mother Swellow's head turned around. She watched and listened intently as the egg in the nest wobbled a little. A sharp cracking noise could be heard from within the egg, and a chip appeared on the shell. A tiny squawking sound broke through, and so did a tiny little head.

Coming out from a mucus-like film was a delicate little baby bird. Excited, Cast and Hera hopped down to look at the chick. Its eyes were closed for now, but they slowly fluttered open. The little Taillow's tiny, black eyes slowly focused on Cast.

It smiled, and said one word.

_Mama._

* * *

**:) ... Believe it or not, the title and twist ending both came to me at the last second. Now you have something to look forward to in the next episode! Also, remember that reviews can make me give out early updates!**

**Next Week: Episode 7- Motherhood**


	7. S1E7: Motherhood

**SEASON 1**

**Have an early update. Thanks for reviews!**

**This episode will probably make more sense if you read the previous one first. Anyways, prepare to be introduced to our two antagonists.**

* * *

EPISODE 7: Motherhood

Winnie squealed with delight upon seeing the baby Taillow. She quickly smoothed out her glittering skirt and picked up the little bird, gazing at it with adoration and petting its downy feathers gently. "She's just so adorable!"

Cast and Hera looked at each other with embarrassed grimaces. Who knew that a fourteen-year old girl would become so completely obsessed with a baby bird?

Just yesterday, Cast and Hera had babysitted Mother Swellow's chicks while she was out. By the time Mother Swellow returned, all was well: but then, the egg had started to hatch. And unfortunately, that newborn Taillow seemed to have imprinted on Cast as its mother.

Mother Swellow had been in shock at first. All of the other chicks recognized her as their rightful mother, but this one was loyal to Cast. It followed him wherever he went, chirping and squawking the same word over and over again: _Mama. Mama. Mama!_

Soon Mother Swellow gave up trying to change the little Taillow's mind and handed it over to Cast. _Let's see if you can really deal with motherhood,_ she'd said with poorly concealed irritation. _Then maybe my baby will come running back to me._

Neither Hera nor Cast knew anything about being a mother, but Hera had quickly come up with an idea. _Winnie treats me like a mom would_, Hera explained. _She combs my fur and gives me bellyrubs and talks to me just like a loving mother! I'm sure if we visited Winnie, you could learn a few things about motherhood!_

Cast wasn't quite as enthused as his feline friend. He'd never asked to be this Taillow's mother: it was just a complete accident! And besides, he was male! It was embarrassing to have a newborn Taillow following him around everywhere, constantly calling him its mother. But eventually he'd given in, and here they were, out on the Weather Institute's front lawn, presenting the Taillow chick to Winnie in order to see what she thought.

So far, things weren't going well.

"She's sooo fluffy!" Winnie squealed. She rubbed the little Taillow's feathers up against her face as the little Pokemon struggled to escape her grasp.

The sliding doors to the Weather Institute soon opened. Press walked out, yawning and stretching his arms. It was only a matter of time before he noticed Winnie. He stood in the entrance for a while, just looking at her and smiling. He would never admit it, but he might have had just a tiny little crush on her.

Winnie suddenly looked up, and Press's heart froze as she realized he'd been looking at her. The girl's delighted look quickly turned into a blank one. "Oh. _You're_ here," Winnie said. "You can sit down, I guess."

That was the one thing Press didn't like about Winnie, the one thing that kept him from having an all out crush on her: she was just so spoiled, so bratty. He would have expected somebody who was raised in such a high-class family to have better manners.

Of course, people would often say the same about him: that he was full of himself, a braggart. Honestly, he couldn't see it. In his eyes, he was the epitome of perfection.

"Why are you holding a Taillow?" Press asked as he seated himself on the bench next to Winnie.

She slid away a little. "Because Cast and Hera brought it to me. I think she's lost her mommy. Isn't she the cutest thing you ever saw?"

Hera frowned. _Hey! Just a few days ago she said _I_ was the cutest thing she ever saw!_

Press tilted his head. "Uh, yeah, I guess it's kind of cute… but how do you know if it's a boy or a girl?" He slid a little closer to her.

Winnie scoffed and slid away. "It's obviously a girl. I know these sorts of things, 'kay?"

Cast and Hera both looked at each other and grimaced. They actually knew from Mother Swellow that the chick was male, not female. Maybe Winnie wasn't the best person to go to for help with being a mother after all.

Winnie and Press's argument about the chick's gender soon got quite heated, to the point where Winnie stood up and stalked away, her sparkly skirt swishing about her knees. Press walked after her insistently.

_Those two are definitely in love with each other,_ Hera said with a dreamy smile. _How adorable._

Cast frowned. To him, it just seemed like the two of them hated each other. Love sure was a complicated thing… hopefully not more complicated than motherhood. Speaking of which, Winnie had left the little Taillow on the bench, where it had sat peacefully, basking in the sun.

_Okay, so what do mothers do?_ Cast asked, floating over to the Taillow.

_Hm… well, first of all, they breastfeed,_ Hera noted.

_Well, yeah, but neither of us have..._ Cast began. Then he frowned as he realized what Hera was talking about. _These are hand-like appendages, Hera! Get your mind out of the gutter!_

Hera giggled. _I was just kidding around. And besides, Taillow is a bird Pokemon, and birds don't breastfeed anyways. Why don't you try giving him a name first?_

Cast looked at the little Taillow closely. It was basking smugly in the sun, ruffling its downy feathers. _I don't know yet,_ he said. _I'm not sure what I should name him. Maybe we should play a few games with him first?_

_Sounds like a great idea!_ Hera exclaimed. She leapt forward and quickly batted Cast with a paw. _You're it!_ she announced, hopping away.

Cast's eyes widened in surprise, then he hovered over to the little Taillow to try and tag him. However, the bird Pokemon caught on faster than he'd expected, jumping out of the way and dashing over to Hera. Cast zoomed towards the two of them, and Hera quickly somersaulted to the side, gripping her tail like a rolling tire. The baby Taillow ducked and waddled to the side.

Cast turned around, smiling and determined to catch Hera. He soared up high into the air, where she wouldn't see him, then slowly floated down to land gently on her head. _Tag. You're it._ He then floated away.

_Hey!_ Hera laughed. _Well, if you're gonna play that way…_ Her image blurred slightly as she used Quick Attack to zoom at Cast, tapping him with her tail before she could even react.

Cast sighed and smiled. _Okay, well, our little Taillow's got to participate._ He turned around to go gently tag the newborn chick, but was surprised to see that the Taillow had vanished. He heard a nasally snickering noise come from above.

Whirling around, Cast saw two small figures standing atop the Weather Institute's roof. The rising sun was at their backs, so Cast wasn't able to get a good look at the two silhouttes.

_We must say, it's been simply sidesplitting watching the two of you make fools of yourselves as your little Taillow was snatched under your eyes,_ one of the small figures said in a nasally voice. _Thank you so much for the entertainment._ The two of them cracked up into high-pitched, screaming laughter.

Cast felt a nervous chill settle upon him. Who were these two Pokemon on the roof? _What have you done with the baby Taillow?_ he demanded, sounding more confident that he felt.

The two small silhouettes snickered again. The two of them clasped hands and jumped off of the roof, somersaulting through the air before landing perfectly on the lawn below.

Their arms were folded in front of them, their pointed noses tipped to the sky. The beige marking on their faces resembled masks. A single leaf grew from each of their heads.

_We are the Nuzleaf Brothers!_ they announced. _You want your Taillow back?_ one began. _Come and get it,_ the other finished. The two of them snickered again.

Cast started to speak. _Listen, we don't have time to_— but before he could finish, the Nuzleaf Brothers knocked him with simultaneous Pounds. He crashed into the ground. As he was struggling to get up, one of the Nuzleaf Brothers flickered into shadow and reappeared behind him, using Faint Attack. _Guess who?_ it whispered. Cast jumped, shivering. He turned around to try and blast it with an Icy Wind, but the Nuzleaf was long gone by then.

Hera tried to Pound the other Nuzleaf with her tail, but it swiftly dodged, replying with a fast barrage of Razor Leafs. Cast zoomed forward to block the attack, cringing as the sharp leaves scraped against his soft skin. He fell to the ground, leaving Hera staring in shock.

_It was great meeting you, _one Nuzleaf sneered.

_But now we've gotta run_, the other proceeded.

_Let's do this again sometime: We had tons of fun!_ The two rhymed simultaneously, snickering with their nasally laughter before leaping over to the Weather Institute's rain pipe. They climbed it like a tree branch, swinging themselves up onto the roof.

Cast watched as the Nuzleaf Brothers heaved up the newborn Taillow, who they'd been lying in rain gutter all this time. He tried to float up and stop them, but it hurt when he tried to move. Here he was, lying helpless on the ground while those poltergeist Pokemon snatched away the Taillow chick.

What an awful mother he was.

Just as Cast was about to give up all hope, he heard the Weather Institute's doors slide open again. Winnie stormed out with Press still tailing her. It was obvious that the two still hadn't made up since their argument over the baby Taillow's gender.

"Ugh, Press, just leave me alone! Why can't-" Winnie stopped short once she saw what was going on the rooftop. "Hey! That's the cute little Taillow we saw earlier! You, baby thieves! Come back here _this instant!" _

Winnie rolled up her stylish sweater sleeves and raced after the Nuzleaf Brothers. Cast and Hera were taken aback: they could practically see the steam coming out of Winnie's ears.

"Get down here right now!" Winnie bellowed. "Nobody messes with my cute little Taillow baby! Don't make me make Press come over and beat you up!"

"Wait-what?" Press stammered.

The Nuzleaf Brothers looked at each other. They were obviously just as surprised as Cast and Hera; and while they had been willing to battle Pokemon, fighting humans was a completely different story. Humans could be bearing knives or guns; no, it would be much better to just hand over the Taillow than to face this human's consequences.

They scrambled down to the ground again, meekly laying the newborn chick at Winnie's feet before speeding off again. _We'll be back again, just wait!_ one hissed at Cast. Then, the two of them disappeared in the forest together.

Cast and Hera weren't really paying attention. They, along with Press, were too busy watching as Winnie switched seamlessly from infuriated to sweet.

"Who's a good little girl?" she said, petting the Taillow gently. "Don't worry, those mean Pokemon aren't gonna bother you anymore!"

Cast looked at Hera. _Now _that's _the spirit of motherhood._

Later that evening, Cast and Hera returned the Taillow chick back to his rightful mother. Mother Swellow had still been upset at first, but the Taillow had warmed up to her a little more since last time. So she finally decided to take it in again, even though it still thought Cast was its mother.

Mother Swellow named the little Taillow Gutter on account of how it had been hidden in the gutter when the Nuzleaf Brothers stole it. Cast and Hera weren't so enthused by the name choice, but Mother Swellow had insisted that all Taillows were named after significant moments in their first few days, and Gutter was the only name that would fit.

_I guess I'm not really cut out for being a mother,_ Cast said as they prepared to leave.

_Oh, don't be so humble,_ Mother Swellow declared. _You fought valiantly to save a child that wasn't even yours from thieves. If that's not being a good mother, I don't know what is._

* * *

**:P I think the funniest part about this story is that Cast eventually got used to being called a "mother" even though he's a boy. Oh, and watch out: We haven't seen the last of these Nuzleaf Brothers. Please review!**

**Next Week: Episode 8- Nothing Scares Nimbus**


	8. S1E8: Nothing Scares Nimbus

** SEASON 1**

**Well, I completely forgot to post this chapter until right now! But it's still Saturday (never mind that it's 8:20 at night) so I'm still right on schedule.**

**Just a heads-up… this episode might be a little more silly than it is spooky XD. That was my intention, I'm no good at telling scary stories. Don't say I didn't warn you!**

* * *

Episode 8: Nothing Scares Nimbus

Rain crashed down on the roof of the Weather Institute in torrential sheets. Thunder boomed overhead, and lightning sizzled through the sky intermittently. The Weather Institute's power had shut down, causing many short circuits. Everybody had been forced into the safe basement, with only a single battery-powered lamp to help them see through the dark.

Stratus, Nimbus, Cumulus, Cirrus, Winnie, Press, Cast, and Hera were all huddled close together around the lamplight. They stayed near one another for body heat.

Winnie was actually sitting close to Press voluntarily for once. Press, being big-headed as ever, took it to mean that she'd finally taken a shine to him.

The downpour outside had changed Cast into his Rain Form involuntarily. He shivered: this form change had made him timid, depressed, and easily scared. As a result, he was huddled close to Hera.

Cast whimpered a little and Hera rolled her eyes. She wasn't amused by Cast's frequent mood swings. When he transformed into Sun Cast it was all right, but Snow Cast and Rain Cast were just downright pains. Hera occupied herself by batting at a ball of pink yarn absentmindedly.

Only one person in the room sat alone. Professors Stratus and Cirrus had sidled up to the warm Professor Cumulus; that left only Nimbus. She refrained from sitting next to anybody, and was positioned in an uncomfortable-looking kneel.

Thunder crackled outside, and Stratus spoke. "Well, it seems like we might be stuck down here for a while… anybody want to tell scary stories?"

_Perfect!_ Hera exclaimed. _A spook-off! And the person who tells the best scary story wins!_ Of course, nobody but Cast was able to understand what she'd said.

Nimbus let out a loud, intentional cough of disapproval. She narrowed her eyes at Stratus, but before she could open her mouth to object, Professor Cumulus cleared his throat.

"I do, in fact, have a scary story to tell," he admitted. "But, be warned… it's quite frightening." Cumulus cleared his throat again, took a deep breath, and spoke. "It is rumored that far out in the ocean lies an enormous tower called Sky Pillar. Surrounded by booming thunder, crackling lightning and unpredictable waves, it just might be the most dangerous place in Hoenn. Stretching over a hundred feet tall, it has begun to crumble over the years: pieces of floor give away at a moment's notice, steps of staircases chip off as easily as toothpicks snap. The Pokemon inside haunt it to this very day… Sableyes with glinting eyes, Bannettes with zippered mouths, Dusclops that fade in and out of the darkness, Mawiles who lure you close and then bite you with their terrible jaws! But that's not the worst part about Sky Pillar… the worst part is when you reach the top of the tower. You're so high up, you can hardly see the ground! Oh dear!"

Cumulus shivered a bit at his own story, taking a few deep breaths to calm himself down. Nimbus and Stratus looked at each other dubiously. Was this guy serious? That story hadn't been spooky at all.

"Um, yes, that story certainly was… frightening," Stratus said, patting Cumulus's shoulder in an attempt to help soothe the quaking professor. "Anybody else have another scary story?" He put particular emphasis on the word "scary".

Winnie raised her hand. "I do!"

Everybody groaned.

"So," said Winnie, "I had this 50% off coupon for the Lilycove Department Store, right? And then I had my parents drive me all the way to Lilycove, but-"

"Let me guess, you forgot the coupon. Oh, the absolute horror," Nimbus said dryly.

Winnie frowned. "Well, it was nothing to joke about!"

Professor Stratus buried his head in his hands then looked up at every gathered around the lamplight. "Does anybody in this room have a _legitimately scary _story to tell all of us?!"

Hera stepped forward. The lamplight shone on her fur, giving her an eerie glow. She settled down into an ominous crouch, letting her eyes scan the circle. Then she began to speak, mewing and hissing intermittently. Her tone rose and fell, and at certain parts of particular intensity she would pounce forward. At times she paced around the lamplight, causing shadows to be cast on all different parts of the room. Her meowing could change from gentle and kind to harsh and spooky at a moment's notice. Her tail flicked from side to side, and the three whisker-like hairs atop it quivered at moments of high suspense. The story she told eventually became so dire that she had to unsheathe her tiny claws, baring them for the world to see and letting out an earsplitting yowl.

By the end of the story, Rain Cast was quaking and whimpering and hugging tightly to Press. Once she reached the yowl, he completely lost it. Rain Cast's eyes rolled to the back of his head and he fainted right where he floated.

All of the humans in the circle looked from Cast to each other. They were all a little unsure of what to say.

"I'm sure your story was very frightening," Stratus said kindly to Hera, "But none of us could understand a word you said."

Hera sighed, walking back to the outskirts of the circle to play with her ball of yarn again. _Oh well… it's their loss, _she muttered to herself.

"I guess the problem is, everybody has different ideas of scary," Press said.

Cumulus nodded. "We all have our individual fears and worries…. my own personal fear is heights, as Professor Cirrus knows." The two of them shared grim smiles as they remembered the perilous situation that had occurred at Fortree City about a week prior. Cumulus's dizzying fear of heights had almost cost him his life then.

"I can often become a little claustrophobic," Cirrus said in a quiet voice. "Having spent most of my life in the open heights of Fortree City, being in small enclosed spaces can often have a suffocating feeling on me. But don't worry, this basement is fine, quite large enough for me," she said quickly. With that, she clammed up again and was silent.

Stratus nodded. "And I've always been afraid of the unexpected… so a surprise storm like certainly is a little worrying." He rubbed his arms together a little in an attempt to stay warm and turned to Nimbus. "What about you? What's your fear?"

Nimbus shook her head. "I don't have any sort of crippling fear. Not a single one, and I never have."

"But you must be at least a little scared of something," Professor Cumulus said. He was obviously doubtful. "Not scared of the dark? Not scared of heights, not scared of the small spaces, not scared of the unexpected?"

"Why should I be?" Nimbus replied. "Dangerous things rarely ever lurk in the dark around here, and besides, we keep flashlights and lamplights stocked everywhere around the Weather Institute so there's nothing to be afraid of. I have no reason to be frightened of heights, since I have faith in any tall buildings or structures that I may happen to be standing in. And, if I ever _do_ come across any tall structure that looks rickety or unstable, I simply don't scale it. That's not a fear of heights, that's simply common sense. As for being claustrophobic, I find that to be somewhat of a silly fear. No matter how close or tight the squeeze may be, so long as there's a window or slit or air source, you'll be fine. And if there isn't any air source: well, again, fearing for your life in _that_ type of situation is just common sense, not a phobia. And as for fearing the unexpected, why should I worry? I'm almost always prepared for anything life throws my way, and when I'm not, it isn't too difficult to come up with a solution. I can't believe that all of you would waste so much time worrying about your fears and phobias. There's nothing to be afraid of."

After receiving a large round of silence, Professor Nimbus cleared her throat and declared, "I'm going back upstairs to go get a drink of water. I'll be back in about a minute. She turned around and walked up the steps, exiting the basement and rounding the corner.

Once Nimbus was gone, all of the professors exploded into conversation.

Stratus was the first to speak. "Don't you think that Nimbus's lack of fear is a little…"

"Odd?" Cumulus offered.

"Improbable?" Cumulus added.

"Exactly," Professor Stratus finished. "Everybody's afraid of something… even Nimbus. We just have to find out what."

And so, the three professors began to hastily concoct a plan.

* * *

Nimbus returned a few minutes later with a glass of water in her hand. She stepped down the stairs to the basement, muttering about what a bother this storm was, and what sissies the others were.

When Nimbus arrived at the basement, she was greeted by complete darkness. Before, there had been a lamplight on so everybody could see what went on in the entire basement. But now Nimbus couldn't see a thing. For a moment, she hesitated, unsure whether she should step forward or not. Then she chided herself for being afraid, and bravely stepped forward into the darkness. "Hello?" she asked. "Did the lamplight run out of battery?"

For a few seconds, there was no response. Then she heard the sound of heavy breathing somewhere in the distance. She listened to the raspy exhaling and inhaling, a sound that would have sent shivers down anyone else's spine. But she didn't worry.

She took another step, and this time heard a sound reminiscent of nails scraping down a blackboard. Nimbus shivered slightly, but quickly dismissed the sound. Really, did these people think they could scare here? She backed up a little, suddenly hearing footsteps coming from the opposite direction. Two pairs of heavy shoes fell down the floor, shuffling slightly before lifting themselves up to walk even closer.

Next she heard a hissing noise. She was about to ignore it, but then she started to wonder… there was something awfully… inhuman about that sound. Could it be… some sort of creature? Nimbus was beginning to get a little worried by now, but she managed to calm herself.

"I'll just go see if we have another lantern upstairs," she said. But just as she was about to turn around, she heard a voice in her ear.

"BOO!"

Nimbus whirled around and thrust her hand through the darkness, smacking whatever the noise had come from. She heard it slump to the ground.

The room suddenly lit up again as Cirrus turned on the blinding lamplight, rushing over to the scene. Professor Cumulus was sprawled out on the floor, apparently in a daze after being smacked by Professor Nimbus.

Now that the lights were back on, Nimbus could see what had been going. The heavy breathing had been Stratus in the corner; the "nails scraping against the blackboard" had just been Hera running her claws along the wall; the heavy footsteps was Press in his sneakers and Winnie in her heels; and the hissing noise had been Rain Cast letting off some steam. Literally.

"Jeez, all we were trying to do was give you a little scare!" Stratus said to Professor Nimbus, running over to help Cumulus up. "Aren't you afraid of anything?"

She sighed and shook her head. Then she spoke.

"I hope you've all learned your lesson: Nothing. Scares. Nimbus."

* * *

**Indeed. Poor Cumulus: he'll have a five-fingered bruise for days.**

**Anything you liked, disliked, or would want to see in later episodes? Well then, REVIEW!**

**Next Week: Episode 9- The Butler's Evaluation**


	9. S1E9: The Butler's Evaluation

**SEASON 1**

…**Wow. I guess this shatters my perfectly-on-time updating record. Between not having an extra chapter prepared, concerts, a speech and debate tournament, being sick, and preparing for semester finals, I haven't really had the time or motivation to write this chapter. But, now that I'm on Winter Break, I'm ready to jump right back into the world of Castform Chronicles. Sorry I kept everyone waiting!**

* * *

EPISODE 9: The Butler's Evaluation

Cirrus was out on the first floor of the Weather Institute. It had been a busy day, and she was exhausted. Of course, she never would have admitted it to the other Professors; Cirrus preferred to stay quiet and do her duty. But now that she was off-duty, she simply sat at one of the tables, spinning a globe of the world and tracing along the mountainous impressions with her fingertip.

The sound of a ringing bell suddenly resounded through the room. Cirrus recognized it instantly to be the doorbell. But… why would somebody be at the door? As far as she could remember, it wasn't the milkman's day, and they hadn't been expecting any packages either.

Curious but somewhat hesitant, Cirrus stood up and walked over to the front door. The slightly short professor stood up straight to get a better look through the peephole. An impatient-looking gentleman was standing outside, dressed in a dark suit with a hint of mauve. A handkerchief poked out from the man's breast pocket.

Professor Cirrus opened the door, revealing herself to the guest.

"Good day," the man said.

"Nice to meet you," Cirrus said quietly. "And… who exactly do I have the pleasure of meeting?"

The man looked somewhat surprised. "I thought you'd already know about my arrival! I hold the most esteemed position of being young Lady Winnifred's butler."

* * *

"You never told us your butler would be coming here!" Professor Nimbus hissed to Winnie's. The two of them along with Cirrus were standing in the kitchen conclave, hidden from view. Stratus and Cumulus were making small talk with Winnie's butler out in the open.

Winnie's face went red, and she tossed her strawberry blond hair indignantly. "Okay, so maybe I forgot to tell you guys a few things. I must have thrown the letter in the trash or something, alright? I can't be expected to remember these sorts of things!"

"He said something about an evaluation," Nimbus said, not satisfied with Winnie's roundabout answer. "What does he mean?"

Winnie's closed her eyes and huffed. "Fine, I'll tell you why he's here if you'll just quit being such a nag!" She sighed and looked at both Professors. "As you guys know, the Devon Corporation's one and only Mr. Stone is my grandfather. The Champion, Steven Stone, is my uncle and both of my parents are busy running all over Hoenn on their endless business trips. Since my family's pretty much got their hands full, and they don't have time to check in on me personally, they sent my butler over to check in on me. To… make sure I'm doing okay here at the Weather Institute."

"And what if he doesn't think you're doing okay?" Nimbus exclaimed.

Winnie shrugged. "He'll probably end my internship early and take me back to Rustboro City."

As Professor Nimbus and Professor Cirrus stared at Winnie in disbelief, all three of them remained unaware of the two sets of eyes watching them from the nearby window. Two mischievous figures snickered behind the glass, hopping off the sill and quickly vanishing from sight.

* * *

Cast floated silently down the staircase, with Hera padding down the steps behind him.

_What's all the fuss about?_ she asked, obviously a little irked by the sense of urgency that had settled upon the institute.

_It seems like Winnie's butler is paying her a surprise visit,_ Cast said. _Press seemed pretty stressed out: he kept saying that if anything didn't fit the butler's expectations, Winnie might end up getting yanked out of the Weather Institute._

Hera gasped, and abruptly stopped descending the staircase. She hopped up onto the banister, putting herself at Cast's level._ That's awful!_ she cried. _Winnie can't leave! She and Press were meant for each other!_

Cast nodded emphatically. _Agreed! And I mean, about Winnie not leaving._ He honestly couldn't care less about her and Press being meant for each other. The two of them hurried down the staircase, arriving at the first floor to watch the proceedings.

Cumulus was babbling on and on as he led Winnie's butler through the tour, looking somewhat flustered. He knew that Winnie's family was one of the wealthiest in all of Hoenn, and he wanted to make a good impression, even if it was just on their butler.

Winnie stood in the corner with the two female professors and Press. Kind Professor Cirrus stood next to her for comfort, even though she probably didn't need it; Winnie didn't seem worried at all. Actually, she looked rather bored.

Press stood at Winie's other shoulder, biting his nails in trepidation; he looked more nervous than anybody else about this situation. He was just starting to feel like Winnie was finally warming up to him: she couldn't leave now! He'd come so close!

The butler nodded, listening to Cumulus's every word, withdrawing his handkerchief from his breastpocket with a flourish and using it to gently dab the tip of his long nose. He carefully fitted back into its pocket a continued to walk. The long coattails of his jacket along with the regal air with which he walked reminded Cast of Mother Swellow.

Cast smiled cheerfully at this comparison, but then he saw something that halted his mirth. Hera was standing stock-still, her ears perked up high and an apprehensive expression on her face. The whiskers atop her tail seemed to quiver slightly.

Hera turned to look up at Cast. _Do you hear that?_ she whispered. _Footsteps. On the second floor. _

After focusing a little, Cast could hear it too—little pitter-pattering footfalls. Something was scampering around on the floor above them. But when Cast looked around the room, everybody was gathered here on the first floor. What could possibly be making the noise upstairs?

* * *

After having backed away from the scene, Cast and Hera quickly ascended the staircase. When they arrived at the second floor, they were greeted with a rather unpleasant surprise.

_Not you two!_ Cast spat.

The Nuzleaf Brothers stood up on a countertop at the far end of the room. The floor was littered with sharp shards of shattered glass from the window behind them. They'd spilled water from the sinks all over the floor and on the countertops, and they'd ripped down one of the wind current posters from the walls.

The two rascally Pokemon's noses were tipped up to the air and roguish smiles played on their lips.

_How nice to see you again! _one said. _I hear this Institute's being evaluated today! How very…_

_Nerve-wracking! _The other picked up a vial from the countertop. He spun it around between his fingers, letting it fly out from his hand. _Oops!_ he exclaimed with a smile.

Hera pounced forward as the vial fell. She skidded forward in one of the puddles of water to catch it in her paws just as it was about to shatter on the tiled floor. By the time she looked up, the Nuzleaf brothers had advanced to the large center monitor, tap-dancing and front-flipping all over the long keyboard. The screen flickered on and off, making erratic noises and flashing error codes.

Cast took a deep breath and blew a huge gust of wind at the Nuzleaf Brothers that sent them tumbling off of the keyboard and onto the floor. The two of them managed to land squarely in kneeled positions amidst the glass shards, standing up and facing Cast.

_If it's a battle you want-_ one sneered.

_Then it's a battle you'll get!_ the other finished

Hera shot a worried glance at Cast. _You know we can't start a battle in here. Winnie's butler will be coming up here to finish his evaluation!—_

_I know, _Cast muttered. Suddenly, he heard heavy footsteps coming up the stairs and he whirled around to face the noise. The humans were coming up to the second floor.

By the time and Hera turned around again, the Nuzleaf Brothers had leapt out of the building through the shattered window.

In a matter of seconds, Winnie's butler and his entourage came marching up the stairs. All four of the professors looked significantly more relieved (save Nimbus, who'd never looked worried in the first place); after all, they were arriving at the tail end of the tour and nothing had gone wrong yet. Winnie still looked as uninterested as ever, but Press was sweating bullets in his anxiety.

Then, all of them noticed the floor. Cast and Hera cringed. The shards of glass that the Nuzleaf Brothers had knocked from the window upon their entrance still rested on the floor, their sharp ends glinting in the sunlight. The water still dribbled out from the sinks to rest in puddles on the floor. The wind-current poster on the wall was still ripped.

Everybody stared at the catastrophic scene.

Everybody looked at Winnie's butler in anticipation.

The butler's eyes were widened in shock. He smoothed out the tip of his mustache. "Lady Winnifred's parents told me they wanted to the best for her. They instructed me to withdraw their daughter from the institute if I encountered any flaws in her education, safety, and general well-being. This is clearly an infraction of safety and displays a lack of maintenance, and as such-"

"Stop!" Stratus shouted. "Everybody, just—slow down. Stop."

Everyone in the room, Winnie's butler included, stopped to look at Professor Stratus. The tense, hurried pace of the situation vanished instantly, as if he'd managed to slow down time. Stratus looked at everyone, causing them to relax. Then he exhaled, looking Winnie's butler in the eyes. Stratus spoke in a slow voice.

"Here at the Weather Institute, we've done our best to provide the best experience possible for Winnifred," he said. "All of us have listened to her, and all of us have spent time with her. We know her. For instance, did you know that she likes to be called Winnie, not Winnifred?"

The butler frowned, remaining silent.

Professor Stratus continued. "An evaluation like this doesn't happen everyday, but let's just calm down for a second. I can assure you that our Weather Institute doesn't always look like this. And even if it did, we could clean it up pretty quickly if we worked together. But that's beside the point. The point is that you can't judge a place solely based on appearances, you can't judge based on arbitrary first impressions. Because of this, I think the best person to decide if Winnie stays or goes… is Winnie."

He turned to look at Winnie. So did everybody else. She seemed nervous to have the spotlight on her so suddenly.

Cast was worried. He knew that Winnie wasn't exactly jazzed to be here at the Institute; she frequently complained and moped around, claiming she wished she could go back home. Even Hera's ears drooped. She knew what Winnie would choose. This meant no more bellyrubs in the morning.

"I…" Winnie sighed. She looked at everyone. "I'm really sorry. But…" Now she looked to her butler. "I don't think I'll be going home. I mean, sure, sometimes I totally wish I could just go home, or be somewhere else, but… to be honest, I guess The Weather Institute is kind of like my second home. And… I want to stay here and continue my internship."

Her butler was silent for a while, and then he nodded. "Your parents did say they wanted the best for you," he murmured. "And I do truly think that you are the only one who can truly judge what is best for you. Lady Winnifred—excuse me, Winnie—you can stay here at the Weather Institute."

And Winnie smiled for the first time all day.

* * *

**Hopefully I'll be able to get back into the swing of things again . If you missed the episode where we were introduced to the Nuzleaf Brothers, it was called Motherhood. Please review!**

**(P.S. You can expect to see Gutter again in the next update. :D)**

**Next Week: Episode 10- Fishing for Feebas**


	10. S1E10: Fishing for Feebas

**SEASON 1**

**It's Christmas. Have a surprise update! Plus, I need to make up for the weeks I missed. This episode kind of reflects my frustration at trying to fish for Feebas in Emerald… Stupid you-can-only-catch-Feebas-in-specific-random-water-tiles rule. I never did end up catching one… Anyways, let's see what Gutter and his family have been up to!**

* * *

EPISODE 10: Fishing for Feebas

Today was the first day that Gutter and his siblings were officially allowed to wander around out of the nest. Mother Swellow decided it was important for all of her growing Taillow babies to learn how to look for their own food. Gutter, being the youngest by far, hadn't gotten many feathers yet. His body was covered with splotchy, ruffled down and only a few little feathers poked out here and there. But Gutter couldn't care less about his haphazard appearance.

_Hurry up!_ One of Gutter's siblings said from behind him. The Taillow babies jumped out of the nest one by one, flapping their wings to slow down their fall. Gutter was standing at the edge of the nest, not quite ready to jump off yet.

_Jeez, I'm just gettin' ready, alright?_ Gutter squeaked. He drew himself up, puffed out his chest, bent into a crouch, and took off. For a few seconds he felt himself soaring upwards, but it wasn't long before gravity took its hold on him, pulling him down to earth. The few feathers he had quivered in his descent.

Gutter spread out his wings, trying his best to slow down the fall by catching some air. His efforts didn't seem to have any effect; he collided with the leafy forest floor just as quickly as ever.

It wasn't long before Gutter popped up from the colored leaves, a little dazed, but mostly eager to explore the forest.

_Feel free to wander around! _Mother Swellow cawed to her little Taillows. _Don't stray too far from the nest! I'll be around to check in on all of you in a few minutes!_ She thought it necessary for them to learn more about their surroundings, or maybe even find their own food.

Gutter didn't need to be told twice. He motored away, his little scaly legs upturning leaves left and right as he ran. The little Taillow leapt over tree roots in a single bound, pioneering through forest frontier like no other. Every now and then he'd trip on a branch, but he'd get right back up like nothing had ever happened, zooming off at breakneck speeds.

Over the course of three minutes, he'd traveled a grand total of fifty feet.

Greatly exhausted by his arduous adventure, Gutter fell backwards onto the leaves. He decided he would lie there for a few seconds and catch his breath.

However, it wasn't long before Gutter heard the crunching of leaves not very far off, along with the hubbub of human voices. He hopped up to his feet, scampering forward and poking his head out from behind a bush to see what was going on.

It looked like two humans were strolling in the direction of Surskit Lake. Gutter toddled a little closer to get a better look. One of them… was very fat, and the other… oh, he recognized that one! Gutter couldn't exactly remember where he remembered him from, but he remembered him: that much was certain.

"Now, some people say that wild Feebas have gone extinct, but personally, I think that's a bunch of malarkey. I'm sure, being a first time fisher and all, you'll want to jump right to using Caterpie, or perhaps something more local like Wurmple, but it turns out that fish Pokemon only have appetites for a select few Bug-type Pokemon, and Caterpie and Wurmple aren't on the list. Then you'll probably want to use fresh meat, but you'll have to understand that we can't use that type of bait, not in a lake potentially containing Carvhana," Cumulus babbled. He held a silver container of fishing materials and had his fishing rod slung over one shoulder. "We can't afford to let one of those savage little things catch a bite, so we'll have to be selective about the bait we use. Lucky for us, Carvhana only have a taste for meat, and I just so happen to have some alternate bait at the ready!" He lifted up a little transparent container filled with mushy brown pellets.

Press didn't look nearly as eager to go fishing as Cumulus. "If your alternate bait isn't meat, then what is it?" he asked.

Cumulus opened his mouth to answer, but then he closed it. After looking at the thinking for a while, he responded, "I… actually don't know. But it says on the label that it's not meat, and that's all that matters!" With that, the two of them continued to walk.

Gutter found these two humans to be quite amusing, so he decided to follow them on their way to the lake. It wasn't long before Cumulus and Press arrived at Surskit Lake, oblivious to the Taillow tottering along behind them.

The surface of Surskit Lake was teeming with life. Lotads could be seen floating just under the surface, the wide leaves atop their heads resembling disc-like buoys. A few Volbeat and Illumise buzzed around above the lake, and blurry glimpses of fish Pokemon could be seen under the water. However, the most breathtaking aspect of Surskit Lake was in its namesakes. The tiny blue bug Pokemon skittered across the outskirts of the lake, leaving miniature ripples in their wake which caused the entire lake to shimmer.

While Cumulus and Press busied themselves by setting up their fishing equipment, Gutter's eyes lit up. Surskit were bug Pokemon, weren't they? The perfect meal! Wouldn't mama be proud of him if he told her he'd been able to catch his own food?

Without wasting any more time, Gutter ran up to the lake's edge and jumped outwards, landing on one of the Lotad lilypads that dotted the surface. The leaf bobbed up and down a little, but it wasn't hard for Gutter to gain his balance. He hopped from leaf to leaf, pecking at the water every time he saw a Surskit. However, he just wasn't fast enough. The little blue Pokemon always skittered away in the blink of an eye.

In a few minutes, Cumulus and Press had found a good fishing spot and had attached bait to their lines. Cumulus went first, swinging the rod back and tossing the line out far into the lake. Press tried to imitate Cumulus's movements, but his line only flew a few feet forward.

"Try again, you'll get the hang of it," Cumulus reassured him. After a few more attempts, Press's fishing line landed a good distance out from the shore. Then, the waiting began.

As Press sat there on the edge of the lake, he let his mind wander. Why in the world had he let Cumulus drag him out fishing? He was really starting to hit it off with Winnie lately… Okay, well maybe hitting it off wasn't the best term to use. More like… becoming good acquaintances. Yeah. As much as Press thought about it, he still couldn't understand why Winnie hadn't taken a shine to him. He was good-looking, funny, intelligent, charming… well at least, in _his_ eyes. He didn't know what was going on with _her _eyes. She obviously needed glasses if she couldn't see how perfect he was.

_It'll be fun! A rugged experience out in the open wilderness!_ Cumulus had claimed. Now Press remembered: that was what had convinced him. He'd thought that maybe "rugged" was the trait he was missing. Maybe "rugged" was all he needed to make Winnie swoon. It turned out that sitting by a lake, waiting for fish to bite was practically the opposite of "rugged".

Ten minutes passed, and neither Cumulus nor Press had caught a bite yet. Press was just starting to nod off when he felt something pull on his line. "I've got one, I've got one!" he shouted.

Cumulus was jolted out of his peaceful stupor. "Reel it in, careful, careful!"

Reeling in the fish was easier than Press had expected: there was little to no resistance. He eagerly reeled in the line faster and faster, until finally, he saw something break the surface—a large wad of tangled algae.

Professor Cumulus chuckled, patting Press on the shoulder as he helped the boy untangle his hook. "That's quite a catch you've got there!"

Press frowned. He wasn't amused by Cumulus's sarcasm.

"It's alright, I'm sure at least one of us will catch a Feebas if we truly set our minds to it. We'll prove those doubters wrong! It's all about patience. If you're having doubts, just think of the delicious dinner we'll be able to make back at home once we catch one!" Cumulus rubbed his large belly in anticipation.

Press perked up again once Cumulus mentioned a delicious dinner back in the Institute. He saw himself striding home with a giant Feebas slung over his shoulder. Winnie would rush out of the Institute upon seeing his enormous catch, grab him by his shirt and give him a passionate smooch—

"No time for daydreaming!" Cumulus said, slapping Press on the arm. "Throw back in that line and let's keep on fishing!"

Press winced, rubbing his sore, skinny arm. Still, he threw in the line just as Cumulus had said, hoping to make his dream a reality.

Meanwhile, twenty minutes worth of hopping from lilypad to lilypad and pecking the water to no avail had left Gutter completely exhausted. The little Taillow fell forwards onto his chest, causing the Lotad he stood on to bob up an down slightly. Unable to move another muscle, Gutter just languished there, his wings outstretched and his little beak parallel to the surface of the lake.

Suddenly, he saw something move just under the lake's surface. It was colored beige and blue, presumably in order to blend in with the sand and water. The only reason Gutter was able to spot it was because he was so close up.

The Taillow chick managed to drag himself up to the edge of the lilypad, squinting down at the water so closely that the tip of his beak broke the surface. The beige figure under the surface seemed to stop once it saw Gutter's beak poking down into the lake. Slowly, the creature rose, seeming to grow larger from Gutter's point of view. He managed to scramble back onto the lilypad just in time as the fish's head emerged from the water.

Gutter found himself staring at two dull, vacuous eyes.

The Feebas before him stared at Gutter blankly for a few prolonged seconds. He could tell it was a female… there was something vaguely feminine about her. The two Pokemon continued to stare at each in what appeared to be an unending staring match. Still, it had to cease eventually.

So the Feebas slowly sank back into the depths of Surskit Lake.

* * *

Cumulus and Press went back that evening with nothing to show for their efforts but a gaunt little Magikarp. Press made a mental note never to listen to anything Cumulus told him. He felt no more "rugged" than he had before he started fishing; unless Cumulus's definition of "rugged" had meant "bored to death, parched, and probably going to wake up with a major sunburn in the morning". Maybe he could fabricate a story about "the big one that got away."

Gutter, on the other hand, had quite a tale to tell, and a true one at that.

"I swear, she was as close up to me as I am to you! And her eyes were _huge! _We must've been staring at each other for… for hours!" Gutter squawked, relating his tale to his siblings back at the nest.

"Gutter, that's impossible," one of his sisters exclaimed. His other siblings joined in.

"Nobody can sit still and stare at somebody for hours. Least of all, you!"

"Plus, I heard that wild Feebas are extinct!"

"You probably just saw a Magikarp who'd been rolling around in the mud."

All of Gutter's siblings dismissed his story, but he didn't care. Their skepticism only made experience all the more poignant.

He had seen a Feebas. This momentous day would always hold a special place in his heart.

* * *

**I envy Gutter so much. XD Anyways, I liked writing about Surskit Lake so much that you can definitely expect to see it again in future updates.**

**Next Week: Episode 11- White Canvas**


	11. S1E11: White Canvas

**SEASON 1**

**So, I live in California, and it doesn't snow here. Then I realized: Hoenn must be the same, right? After all, it does seem like a pretty tropical place. After that I remembered Cast's weather-changing abilities, and voila, this New Year's commemoration was born. Prepare yourself for some Cirrocumulus!**

* * *

Episode 11: White Canvas

New Year's Day had finally arrived, bringing with it a bright blue sky filled with wispy cirrus clouds and puffy cumulus clouds. The scintillating sun above shone its rays down on everyone and everything, heating up what would have otherwise been a cold winter's day. Nature itself seemed to have joined in on the fresh New Year's spirit.

However, a few people seemed to have a very different take on the New Year's spirit.

Winnie and Press ran out of the Weather Institute's front door, dragging a perplexed Professor Cirrus along with them. All three of the humans were dressed up in heavy winter coats, snow boots, scarves, mittens, and woolen caps.

Winnie held Hera in her arms. The little Skitty tried to wriggle out of her grasp, trying to leap out onto the grass so she could play in the sunlight. Eventually, she managed to worm her way underneath Winnie's hands, escaping her grasp and landing delicately on the ground below.

Cast floated behind Press, careful to resist transforming into his Sun Form. As tempting as it would have been to morph into his giddy alter-ego right then and there, he knew it would be counterproductive to what they were about to do.

The two interns led Professor Cirrus out to the middle of the lawn, where they let go of her hands and allowed her to regain her balance. The young professor tugged at her scarf uncomfortably.

She couldn't help but sound a little impatient when she said: "Would you mind explaining?" Cirrus had no idea what was going on.

"Sure," Winnie said. "So, we all know that since Hoenn is closest to the equator, it's like the most tropical region and it almost never snows here, especially not in the Fortee area. It totally sucks. Right?"

"Well…" Cirrus mumbled.

"Exactly!" Winnie interrupted, tossing her hair back. "So, Press and I decided that we'd have Cast make it snow for once! Wouldn't that just be great?" She folded her arms, beaming with excitement.

Cirrus was a little shocked by their plan, but then again, she'd never seen Winnie look so enthusiastic since… well, she couldn't remember!

Taking Cirrus's stunned silence as an okay, Winnie nodded to Cast. The Castform looked from her to Press, and after being reassured by both of them, he rose up into the air. All eyes were on Cast as he hovered above them. He closed his eyes and continued to swivel like a spinning top in slow motion, gaining speed ever so slowly. A chilly wind formed around him that expanded out in one frosty gust. Cirrus's teeth chattered and she made sure to put on her scarf again.

As Cast began to twirl faster and faster, the clouds directly above him darkened. The grayish color of began to spread like dye, seeping into all of the clouds above the Weather Institute and darkening them as well. Cast's spinning had accelerated to a violent twirl, and his brow was furrowed with intense focus. The temperature immediately dropped to freezing temperatures, and Cirrus decided she was thankful for her heavy winter coat.

As Cast whirled, his form blurred. The bottom of his body straightened out into a true top-like point. A green haze corkscrewed its way around Cast's body, ending with a sundae-like finish. He slowly stopped spinning, making it clear that he'd morphed into his Snow Form.

At first, Cirrus was confused. Yes, it was cold, but where was all the-

_Snow. _A pure white flake drifted its way down to earth, falling directly at Professor Cirrus's feet. She looked up: more were following, descending in a flurry of beautiful white specks that she'd only ever seen on television.

Press and Winnie didn't waste any time standing around. The two of them were walking to and fro, reveling in the snowflakes. Even Hera was testing out the white snow, watching wide-eyed as the flakes fell. She leapt up into the air, swiping at the snowflakes to try and catch them, then frowning in puzzlement as they melted in her paws. Press even went so far as to stick out his tongue to try and catch one in his mouth. Cirrus smiled. Moments like this reminded her that these teenage interns could still be just like children.

Cirrus held her hand out, letting a snowflake waft down to land on her palm. Then, she heard the Weather Institute door open and slam shut behind her. She brushed the snowflake off of her hand, whirling around to see Professor Cumulus marching out of the Institute in a huff. In his haste, all he had managed to do was pull on a striped woolen sweater.

"Just what's going on here?" the red-faced professor sputtered, looking wildly at the gentle white flurries all around him. "I can't-"

"It's a New Year's snowfall," Cirrus said softly. "Cast made it, for all of us. Isn't it beautiful?"

Cumulus mouthed Cirrus's words silently as he looked up in wonder. Then, he sniffled a little and shivered, causing Cirrus to lead him back to the porch. Both of them were seated on a bench under the awning, and Cirrus offered Cumulus his scarf. He declined, still a little shocked by the snow.

"A New Year's snowfall," Cumulus mumbled, shaking his head in disbelief. "Why, I never would have dreamed of such a thing."

Cirrus nodded. Together they watched the white snowflakes cascade down onto the Weather Institute's front lawn from under the awning. Then, Cirrus spoke.

"So… what's your New Year's resolution?"

Cumulus looked a little caught off guard. "W-well…"

"Oh, if you don't want to tell me that's—" Cirrus said hurriedly.

"No, no, It's fine," Cumulus assured her. "It's… well, I didn't really have anything fleshed out, but I suppose my New Year's resolution would be to reconnect with my family. It's been quite a while since I've seen them, quite a while since I've even called them, to be honest."

Cirrus smiled. "What was your family like?"

Cumulus looked out into the falling white snow and chuckled. "Well…"

_A young Cumulus sat at a dinner table, peering at an open book before him. He looked to be in his pre-teen years, probably around twelve years old or so. He was easily identifiable as a younger version of the present-day Cumulus; he still had that stout frame, those pudgy reddish cheeks, those sandy blond locks that were only slighter lighter than Cumulus's current sandy brown ones._

_Around the table were a few of his siblings. Cumulus had quite a large family: three of his siblings were seated at the table currently, with four empty chairs designated for two more children and his parents. Cumulus was the eldest of his siblings._

"_Carson, Didn't mom tell you not to read at the dinner table?" one of Cumulus's younger brothers asked him. He was the closest to Cumulus in terms of age, only being one year younger._

"_Well, we haven't started eating yet so I don't think it counts," Cumulus replied. He flipped the page, his eyes scanning the text in a slow, methodic fashion. _

"_What book is it?" Cumulus's little sister asked. She was sitting next to him, leaning over to try and read it for herself. _

_Young Cumulus slid over the book for her to examine, slipping in a bookmark so he would be able to return to his current page once she was done. His little sister flipped over the book's cover, making a futile attempt to sound out the title._

"_An Introduction to Meteorology," Cumulus said helpfully._

"_What's that supposed to be, the study of meteors?" his other younger brother said, laughing._

"_No, it's the study of weather," Cumulus explained. He looked a little bit irked. He scooted over and slid the book away from his sister and back in front of him, keeping it closed. He prepared himself for the expected heckling, but, to his surprise…_

"_That's pretty cool," the first brother said, and his sister and other brother chimed in their approval as well._

_In a few minutes, Cumulus's father, mother, and remaining siblings had arrived at the dinner table. His mother had prepared a delicious stew, and as Cumulus slurped up the finger-licking goodness, he gave thanks for his family; people who he could trust, people who would always be there to support him. _

"I really do need to get in touch with them again…" Cumulus murmured, taking his eyes off of the white flurries to look at Cirrus again. He watched as Winnie packed up a snowball and tossed it at Press. It hit him hard in the chest causing him to stumble back and fall on his bottom into the snow. At first he looked stunned, then he leaned back and started to make a snow angel. Winnie laughed and watched. She would have joined in, but of course, she couldn't ruin her beautiful winter outfit by rolling around in the dirty snow.

"What about you?" Professor Cumulus asked Cirrus. "What's your New Year's resolution?"

Cirrus hugged herself and rubbed her mittens along her arms in an attempt to heat up. When she spoke, a cloud of warm air puffed from her mouth. "I'd like to travel," she said quietly, looking at the white snow. "I've lived right here in the Fortree area all my life, and don't get me wrong, it's been great, but…"

_Cirrus stood at the ground level of Fortree City. She looked to be about high school age, and the older sister standing before her was just heading off to college. Cirrus was still coping with the fact that her older sister was going to be gone... and not just to someplace local, like Mauville or Lilycove, but all the way to the Unova region._

_At first, Cirrus was baffled. Why would anyone want to leave calm, peaceful Hoenn? From what she'd heard, Unova was busy, crowded, and bustling with people: it didn't sound like a place where she'd want to go at all._

"_It's okay, Celia. You'll understand someday," Cirrus's sister had assured her. "I've enjoyed my time here in Hoenn, but now, I just want to expand my horizons. Change is good, and Unova seems like the perfect place to start. It's a really diverse place, and I hope to meet many new people and learn about all walks of life."_

_Cirrus hadn't understood. She wished she could, but she still just couldn't understand what was so alluring about change. She wanted things to stay the same; but everything around her seemed to be insistent on contradicting that wish. _

_She and her sister shared one last lingering embrace, but finally Cirrus had to let go. And as Cirrus watched her sister's car drive away, a single tear rolled down her cheek._

Cumulus looked at a loss for words. He frowned, not saying anything.

"I really wish I was able to experience what my sister could… a love of change," Cirrus murmured. "But I've been too afraid. For this New Year, I'd like to do what my sister did: expand my horizons. While I definitely won't be going to Unova or any far-off, hectic place like that, I really would like to travel and see what she was experiencing."

Cumulus nodded. And as he and Cirrus looked out onto the snow-covered ground before them, they both realized that it signified a resetting, an action of starting anew. The pure white snow before them was like a white canvas: empty, and ready to be painted upon with all the wishes and desires of the New Year.

* * *

**Yeah, everybody saw that metaphor coming, but that's okay! As you can see, this chapter was meant to be a parallel to an Open Mind. Now we have a little bit more insight into the pasts of all four professors. Have a happy upcoming New Year's. :P And please, review! Tell me what you liked, disliked, or want to see in future episodes. I read every single review and keep them in mind when I write.**

**Next Week: Episode 12- Hera and The Mystery of the Missing Wind-up Toy**


	12. S1E12: Mystery of the Missing Windup Toy

******SEASON 1**

**The one time I give my long review spiel is the one time that nobody reviews. XD I know that a decent number of people are reading this story, and consistently too. Why you guys don't review is beyond me; I guess I must be missing something. Anyways, here's a thank you shout-out to all those who have reviewed, especially Alphinia. ****This episode is a funny one. Or at least, my idea of funny. Which is a wierd type of funny.**

**(I would have put the entire title up in the chapter bar but there wasn't enough room...)**

* * *

Episode 12: Hera and The Mystery of the Missing Wind-up Toy

Hera opened her eyes lazily, basking in the shaft of light that fell from the kitchen enclave's sole window. She was curled up in a soft cushion, letting the sunlight warm her silky pink fur. The little Skitty gave a gentle yawn, and then uncurled to stretch out her little legs. Hera shook her self awake, eventually sitting up straight and prancing off of the cushion to land delicately on all four feet. Hera smiled. She licked a paw and turned her head to a certain spot on the kitchen's clean, tiled floor.

What she saw made her heart stop. Or rather… what she _didn't_ see.

Hera's serene demeanor shifted in an instant as the Kitten Pokemon went into hyperdrive. She scrambled over to the empty spot, skidding to a stop on the tiled floor in her haste. Her whiskers quivered and she flailed around in paranoia. She checked the tabletops, counters, corners; she even checked under the cushion she'd been sleeping on. But her search was fruitless.

Her wind-up toy had been stolen.

Hera's wind-up toy had been a gift to her from Winnie not long after she'd joined the Institute. It was a cute little plastic Zigzagoon that meandered this way and that, making sharp turns and delighting the little Skitty to no end as she chased it. Hera played with the toy almost every day. His name was Ziggy.

But now Ziggy was gone.

Questions were popping up everywhere in Hera's mind as rapidly as a colony of Trapinch surfacing from moist dirt. Where was Ziggy? When had he been stolen? How had he been stolen? Why had he been stolen? But most importantly… _Who_ had stolen him?

Hera stopped in her tracks and plopped down to the floor where she sat. She had to think, and she thought best while still. Her fluffy pink tail swished back and forth frenetically as she sat. It had to have been stolen. The toy, that is. Of that much she was certain. But _who?_ There it was again, that ominous, dreadful question.

She was able to rule out a few suspects instantly. Firstly, Professor Cirrus. The kindhearted Professor wouldn't hurt a fly, let alone steal Hera's precious wind-up toy. Secondly, Winnie. She had given Hera the toy, so there definitely wasn't any reason for her to snatch it back. Besides, she couldn't see why the fabulous Winnifred Stone would have any use for a cheap little kitty toy.

That left Stratus, Nimbus, Cumulus, Press, and Cast as possible suspects. There wasn't a moment to lose.

It didn't take long for Hera to locate the first two suspects on her list. As if on cue, she perked up her ears upon hearing the buzz of voices outside. The kitten Pokemon leapt up onto the countertop, zooming over to the kitchen enclave's window and plastering her face up against the glass. From here she had a clear view of source of the noise. Professors Stratus and Nimbus. Bingo. The two of them were outside arguing about something, but Hera couldn't quite hear.

After peeling her face away from the glass, Hera cracked the window open, poking her head outside to listen. It was imperative that she remain unseen and unheard. Like a fly on the wall. A furry, bright pink fly on the wall.

"Oh, for Groudon's sakes, come off it, Nadia," Professor Stratus groaned. There were bags under his eyes, and he was still holding his morning cup of coffee. "I've got plenty of time till the weather report is due, and to this day I've never been late."

"But you're always cutting it too close!" Nimbus replied. "I'm telling you, you're going to have to wake up earlier! I keep thinking I'll have to swoop in and save you every time it's your day!" She looked pretty annoyed with Stratus.

"Listen, you know better than anyone that I take my job here seriously. But to be honest, sometimes I wish you'd stop being so anal-retentive about the daily weather report!" Stratus snapped her.

Nimbus glared at him. She must have decided that she was wasting more time arguing with him than she would save by telling him off. So the tall female professor stalked off, her curly black hair flowing behind her.

Stratus shook his head. Sometimes that woman was as bad as Winnie.

Meanwhile, Hera had closed the window and leapt back onto the kitchen floor. As exciting as all of this drama was, she had to pry herself away from it to face the larger mission at hand. Judging by Stratus's particularly grumpy demeanor, tired eyes, and cup of jo, he'd just woken up. That didn't give the brown-haired, bespectacled professor enough time to have stolen Ziggy. Also, from what Hera had heard, Nimbus was too "anal-retentive" (whatever that meant) to worry about anything other than the weather report. She certainly wouldn't have been out stealing wind-up toys.

Two suspects eliminated. Three to go.

Hera soon found her next two suspects chatting on the first floor. Targets acquired. Cumulus and Press. Hera switched into stealth mode, She snuck up beside the leg of a table, peeking her head out to get a better look at what was going on between the intern and the professor. Here, she was unseen. Here, she was invisible. Here, she was—

"Oh, hi Hera," Press said. He scooped up the little Skitty from under the table and held her in his arms. Press grinned. "Winnie's been looking for you."

Cumulus chuckled as the little Skitty squirmed to escape her captor. "Always thinking about that girl, aren't you? You certainly do like her."

Press blushed. "What? Me? Winnie? I… yeah…" He scratched the back of his head in embarrassment, still managing to hold on to the struggling Skitty with one arm. "What about you?" Press asked Cumulus, trying to shift the spotlight off of himself. "I've seen you shooting some interesting looks at Professor Nimbus."

Cumulus's face went red. "What!?" he sputtered. "That's nothing but poppycock! My boy, you're getting things tangled up, Nimbus is but a colleague, nothing more! Now, that isn't to say I don't admire her as a person, but the field of romance is a completely different story. Why, when I—"

Hera was smart enough not to stay for another one of Cumulus's rambling rants. She wiggled up and out of Press's tight embrace, leaped onto the table, onto the ground, and scampered away. She quickly crossed the two of them off of her figurative suspect list. She could tell by Press's putrid breath that he hadn't brushed his teeth yet, and all that boy ever did in the mornings was roll out of bed, eat breakfast, brush his teeth, and roll back into bed as quickly as possible. He wouldn't have had the willpower to steal Ziggy until he had finished that "morning routine."

As for Cumulus, well… she didn't exactly have any hard evidence eliminating him as a suspect, but she crossed him off of the list anyways, just so she wouldn't have to go back and spend any more time listening to one of his bumbling tirades.

Four suspects down… Only one remained.

Cast.

Hera searched the entire first floor, but Cast was nowhere to be found. She then continued up the stairs to the second floor, where she stumbled upon her final suspect. Literally. She bumped into Cast as he was on his way down the staircase. After regaining her bearings, Hera looked at Cast cautiously. There he was. Ziggy's kidnapper. Or… toynapper. Kidnapper sounded better, so she'd stick with that.

_What's up?_ Cast said, noticing Hera's intense expression. _Is something wrong?_

_I'll ask the questions here,_ Hera said. She gently placed a paw on the upper step of the staircase, stalking up towards Cast. The Castform slowly backed away. Hera spoke one word for every step she took. _What. Did. You. Do. To. Ziggy!?_ Hera pounced, but Cast was one step ahead of her. Literally. She ended up pouncing onto thin air, just inches away from Cast.

Cast only looked more puzzled. _Who's Ziggy?_

Hera sighed, sitting back onto the step. Getting information out of this guy was going to be like squeezing blood from an Oddish. No, wait. Actually, that would be pretty easy. Like… squeezing blood from a Geodude. Yeah, that was better.

_You know… Ziggy. Striped guy? Zigzags when he walks? Doesn't talk much? Short? About yea high? _Hera lifted her paw about two inches from the ground for the sake of demonstration. Once she saw that Cast still wasn't getting it, she sighed and muttered: _My wind-up toy?_

_Ohh,_ Cast said, his befuddled expression quickly giving way to one of realization. Then, he fell silent. Hera's heart stopped. What was Cast about to say? What if the Nuzleaf Brothers had stolen the toy? Those two crooks were always causing trouble. What if Stratus had run it over in his weather van? What if-

_Gutter wanted a toy to play with. I gave it to him. He's out on the lawn. _Cast said embarrassedly.

_What!? _Hera exclaimed. She scrambled down the steps, leaving Cast behind her. The little Skitty hurried across the first floor, exited through the sliding doors and burst out into the sunlight.

The Skitty's ears perked up as she heard a familiar noise. That faint, high, buzzing noise… it was unmistakably the sound of her wind-up toy. She bounded over to the source of the noise, looking down into the grass. Her suspicions were confirmed; the search was over. There, hopping and pecking at the ground, was Gutter. And there, trundling and zigzagging through the grass, was Ziggy, her wind-up toy. The toy was muddy and beaten-up and it had peck marks all over it, but none of that mattered. What mattered was that Ziggy was here, safe and sound.

Hera let out a sigh of relief and plopped down into a sitting position. By working down the list of suspects, spying in on conversations, and finally grilling Cast for the final location of the toy, she had managed to solve the mystery. Detective work sure was exhausting. She was ready to reap her reward.

But as she stretched out a paw to swipe Ziggy off of the dirt and back into the Weather Institute, her eyes caught Gutter's. He cocked his head and looked at her inquisitively.

"Somethin' wrong?" The little Taillow asked.

Hera was about to tell him that yes, something was definitely wrong, she'd woken up that morning to find her precious wind-up toy missing, she'd spent the entire morning worried out of her mind, she'd had to search through a list of suspects, she'd almost given up hope, and she needed that wind-up toy _now._

But she didn't say any of those things.

Instead, she saw the expression on Gutter's face and softened. The little Taillow was… happy. Simply happy. The same way she felt when she played with the wind-up toy. She couldn't take Ziggy away from him right now. No, that would be… stealing. Stealing the toy, and Gutter's joy.

"…Nope. Nothing's wrong," Hera said. "Do you mind if I join in?"

"No problem!" Gutter grinned.

So the two of them raced after Ziggy, hopping and pouncing and leaping and bounding. As Hera played, a smile lingered on her face. Case closed.

* * *

**Heheh… as you can see, I had some fun with Pokemon similes. By the way, "anal-retentive" isn't nearly as insulting as it sounds. It's actually a word used in psychoanalysis. Which is good, because I think I used it once to describe my parents. XD Speaking of psychoanalysis, I think I'll use some reverse psychology now: Guys, please don't review. Just don't. It breaks my heart when I see a review, it really does. So don't do it. :P**

**Next Week: Episode 13- The Treetop Tyrant**


	13. S1E13: The Treetop Tyrant

**SEASON 1**

**Unlucky Episode 13... I'm sure you've been missing the Nuzleaf Brothers dearly. XD Let's get back to 'em, shall we?**

* * *

Episode 13: The Treetop Tyrant

"It's time to go to sleep," Mother Swellow cooed to her babies. All five of the Taillow chicks were snuggled up in their nest. Cast watched with fond interest. He'd popped in just a few minutes ago to say goodnight to Gutter and his siblings. Their bedtime was fairly early; the sun hadn't even set yet. The sky had definitely darkened, but the sun's rays still shone brightly on the distant horizon.

Cast wasn't the only one who felt like the Taillow's bedtime was rather early. Gutter's eyes were wide open. He wasn't the least bit tired, and he wouldn't stop fidgeting. He kept bumping into the other Taillows, keeping them awake.

Finally one of them spoke up. It was one of his sisters. _Gutter, don't you remember what mama always says? If you don't go to sleep, the Triple T's gonna come and get you! If I were you, I'd be more careful!_ she said snootily.

Cast glanced up at Mother Swellow curiously. Who was this Triple T? Mother Swellow read his expression, looking a little embarrassed. She tilted her head to the side, signaling that they should fly over to a different branch to discuss the topic. Cast obliged, floating over to a distant branch and waiting for Mother Swellow to follow.

She gripped the branch tightly with her talons and settled down. _I must admit, I'm guilty of telling my children scary stories every now and then. Sometimes a mother has to do what she must to get her children to clam up and go to bed._ She shuffled on her branch and continued to speak in a hushed undertone, so her babies could get some shuteye.

_The Shadow Grove is down south, towards the humans' Mauville City,_ Mother Swellow explained. _They call it the Shadow Grove because the grass is so tall and the trees are so plentiful and thick there that hardly any light ever shines through their branches to the ground below. Not many creatures live in the Grove… and because of that, many fables and stories have surfaced about those who do live there. It's often hard to separate fact from fiction._

_One of the most common characters is The Tree-Top Tyrant. Also known as The Triple T. _She continued. _He's rumored to be the imperious force at work in the Shadow Grove, and many claim to have caught glimpses of him. _Mother Swellow ruffled her feathers and stood up straight. _But it's all nonsense, and even if it were true, we're much too far away from the Grove for the Tyrant to do us any harm. It's just a tale I tell my children to get them to go to bed._

Cast nodded, though he was more intrigued than he let on. The Castform watched as Mother Swellow took flight again, leaving the branch and returning to her nest to make sure her babies slept soundly. Cast didn't want to disturb them any more than he already had, so he decided that now would be a good time to leave.

As he drifted through the trees, he started to head in the direction of the Weather Institute. But Mother Swellow's tale just kept nagging at him. Cast looked to the sky. The sun still hadn't set yet. He had plenty of time until he had to be back at the Weather Institute.

So he turned around and started heading south, in the direction of the Shadow Grove.

There was no landmark or sudden shift in scenery to indicate where the forest ended and the Grove began. The change was gradual. Cast just continued to float south, and eventually, he realized that he had arrived. The trees around him grew tall and thick, just like Mother Swellow had said. Light had gradually become more and more scarce. The grass grew long and thin.

Cast felt a sudden chill descend upon him. The lack of sunlight here made the air much cooler. He could tell that the further he progressed into the Grove, the colder it would become.

Nevertheless, he continued to float deeper and deeper into the Shadow Grove. The trees became taller the further he floated, the branches above became more tangled and entwined, and all light faded into a dim glow. Cast shivered. The Grove was too cold for him to feel comfortable, but not cold enough for him to transform into his Snow Form.

As he progressed, he thought he saw something flit through the trees. He halted immediately, staying completely still. Cast was aware that he must stand out like a neon sign here, with his bright white body contrasting against his shadowy surroundings. Maybe this hadn't been such a good idea after all. Maybe…

He heard something rustle in the branches behind him, and he whirled around. One of the branches was quivering, like something had just jumped off of it. Cast slowly floated away from the branch.

Then, they struck. Two figures came swinging through the branches behind him. By the time Cast spun around to look at them, it was too late. The two creatures somersaulted in midair, stretched out their bodies and flew straight at Cast. The two creatures collided with the poor Weather Pokemon and slammed him into the ground.

_Well, well!_ a familiar voice snickered in Cast's ear.

_Whadda we have here?_ its companion wondered.

Cast's blood boiled with anger. Not them again. Those Nuzleaf Brothers were always sticking their pointy little noses into everything! Cast struggled to get away from them, but their grips held him tight to the grassy forest floor. Finally, Cast looked them in the eyes and twisted around suddenly, exuding a cold gust of wind that blew the wily Pokemon up and away.

The two of them landed skillfully on their feet, as always, not too far away from Cast. The Weather Pokemon got back up into the air, glaring daggers at the Nuzleaf Brothers as the two of them stood back to back, noses pointed in the air.

_I should have known the two of you would be hanging around the Grove,_ Cast spat.

_Ooh, getting a little angry, are we?_ The Nuzleaf Brother chanted in unison. The two of them twirled once, sending razor sharp leaves slicing through the air at Cast. He managed to dodge the leaves; their attack only made him more angry.

Cast began to summon a mass of snowy storm clouds up above, but quickly realized it would be no use: the snow wouldn't even be able to make it past the Grove's leafy canopy.

Suddenly, the Nuzleaf Brothers clasped hands with each other. It took Cast a while to realize that the two of them were using Nature Power. Before he could react, vines sprang out from the branches of the trees, wrapping themselves tightly around Cast's body and snapping taut. They vines snapped him back into the tree, trapping him and rendering him helpless.

The Nuzleaf Brothers tittered as they dashed over to the trees. The two of them climbed swiftly and danced on branches just beyond Cast's reach. They taunted and teased him, chanting and jeering and snickering all the while.

_Enough,_ boomed a deep voice.

The Nuzleaf Brothers froze, and so did Cast. His twin tormentors quickly scurried off to stand at either side of him, like sentries. They gave the vines some slack, letting him droop lower and lower to the ground. They stopped about a foot from the grassy forest floor. Cast shivered as he heard something start to move through the trees. Whatever it was, it was heavy, heavy enough to make the branches creak. He found himself filled with dread as the being drew closer and closer…

The heavy creature dropped from the trees suddenly with a thunderous _thump._ It was too dark for Cast to make out exactly what it was, but Cast could see a multitude of tiny flecks adorning its shadowy frame. As the creature moved, the tiny pinpoints quivered, shining dully in the dim light.

_Who dares to enter my domain?_ the deep voice bellowed.

_This one, boss, _one of the Nuzleaf Brothers said, swinging down to the forest floor. He jabbed Cast with a finger for emphasis.

_Yeah, we saw him comin' a mile away, Triple T! _said the other.

Cast took in a sharp gasp of breath. So this was the Treetop Tyrant.

The dark figure standing before Cast seemed to cock its head slightly, causing the little glistening specks to quiver again. Cast received the uneasy feeling that he was being sized up. Then, it laughed. The deep chortling boomed through the forest, causing the dull pinpoints to shake erratically.

Cast gulped as the shadowed being took one heavy step forward. He could hear the creature's raspy breathing. The poor little Castform shivered, fearing the worst. Nevertheless, he couldn't bear to tear his eyes away from the quivering flecks dotting the dark figure's shadow frame. What were they? What kind of Pokemon was the Treetop Tyrant? Was it even a Pokemon at all?

_You seem to have trespassed,_ the shadowed creature mused cruelly. _For this, you must be punished._

The creature took another step forward. The Nuzleaf Brothers were waiting on either side of Cast with bated breath. The two of them were eager for the Triple T to issue them a command, or perhaps attack Cast personally. Either way, the Nuzleaf Brothers were on their toes.

Just as Cast braced himself for his punishment, he heard a screech from up above. The Nuzleaf Brothers' heads whirled upwards, and so did the shadowy being's; Cast could tell because the dull flecks seemed to spin around through the darkness. Cast looked upwards as well, glimpsing the most welcome sight of his life.

Mother Swellow was swooping down from the high branches, talons outstretched in a daring attempt to rescue Cast. The Nuzleaf Brothers somersaulted out of the way as her sharp talons dug into the dirt where they had been standing. The giant Swallow Pokemon whipped around to face the Treetop Tyrant, but the shadowed being had already vanished into the murky depths of the grove.

Cast's avian savior let out one last earsplitting screech in the Nuzleaf's direction. The two mischievous little Pokemon scrambled away like frightened puppies. They didn't even have the time to issue a typical wisecrack or ominous threat of vengeance.

After ensuring that the two of them were in no more danger, Mother Swellow tore away at Cast's binding vines. The little Weather Pokemon was shocked, in awe… but mostly relieved.

_How did you know I had gone to the Grove?_ he asked breathlessly as Mother Swellow tore apart the vines that ensnared him.

Mother Swellow ripped apart the last vine with her beak, finally setting Cast free. _I noticed a rather inconspicuous snow cloud up in the sky above this very spot. I figured it had to be you, _she said.

Cast remembered how he had tried to summon a snow cloud above to turn him into his Snow Form, but had quickly resigned after realizing the snow wouldn't make it through the leafy canopy. Luckily, he must have forgotten to clear the clouds afterwards. They had made a perfect beacon for Mother Swellow to follow.

* * *

It didn't take long for the the two of them to escape from the Grove. Mother Swellow led Cast up and out through the dense upper branches above. They finally broke free form the leafy world and found themselves up in the air. By now, the sun had almost completely vanished behind the horizon.

_You should be able to find your way home from here,_ Mother Swellow said as she flapped her wings. _But promise me you won't ever enter the Grove again._

_I promise, _Cast replied. _Thank you so much. _He saw a steely glint in Mother Swellow's eyes; the same glint he'd experience so long ago, when she'd been valiantly protecting her babies from him. It warmed Cast a little to know that Mother Swellow considered him enough of a friend to do the same for him as she would one of her chicks.

And as he hurried back to the Weather Institute, filled with fear and relief, he had no intention of going back on his promise. His journey to the Grove had been far from inviting. No, Cast resolved to keep his word and never return.

Unfortunately, as time would tell, fate had other plans for the young Castform.

* * *

**Hm… review please? It may be a while before we meet the Triple T again, but I'd love to hear your comments/hopes/predictions. **

**Next Week: Episode 14- Sage Advice**


	14. S1E14: Sage Wisdom

**SEASON 1**

**Yeah, there are a lot of reasons why this episode is late, most of which are very similar to the ones I listed earlier… The bright side is that I finished this episode on Sunday and was able to stockpile a new one so I'll always be one episode ahead if this situation ever happens again. By the way, I came up with a name for PressxWinnie… Monsoonshipping. :P Get it, 'cause monsoons are wind and rain, and the two of them represent wind and rain?**

…**.you just want to get to the episode, don't you? :P**

* * *

Episode 14- Sage Wisdom

It was Monday. Winnie hated Mondays.

She remembered the day she'd been told she would be starting an internship at the Weather Institute. She'd begged her parents not to make her go, resorting from bribes to tears and everything in between. Of course, now she respected and appreciated their decision, but in those days, she had been desperate not to leave. Back then, the realization that there would be no school to attend at the Weather Institute was her only solace.

Then she realized she was wrong.

Every weekday, Press and Winnie had to roll out of bed and get ready for classes. Monday represented the new start of this tedious, endless cycle. Each new day of teaching was a mystery; one day Professor Stratus might be teaching them, on the next day they might rotate between Nimbus and Cumulus, on another they might meet up with all four professors at various times. Sometimes classes got canceled, since the professors didn't always have time to teach the interns. Sometimes the "classes" weren't really classes at all, and only required them to do a weather check or help fix the rusty old barometer.

Today Press and Winnie were split up. Press was on the ground floor, reviewing cloud types with Professor Stratus, while Winnie was on the second floor, going over temperature conversion with Professor Nimbus. They didn't used to have separate classes so often, but the professors had recently learned that Press absorbed much more information when he wasn't able to ogle at Winnie.

"Convert thirty-one degrees Celsius into Fahrenheit," Professor Nimbus said.

Winnie groaned inwardly and started to scribble out the calculations on her notepad. She was wearing a loose pink shirt that fell down on one shoulder, and shorts that came up to about her mid-thigh. Her strawberry blond hair was woven into a neat braid to keep it from falling in her face when she tried to write. Winnie didn't see why she had to do this on paper. She was pretty sure that some nerd, somewhere, had developed some software to do that sort of thing automatically. Who needed math when you had technology?

"Fifty-nine degrees," Winnie concluded.

"That's incorrect," Nimbus replied, resulting in a loud groan from Winnie. The professor walked over to examine Winnie's paper. "You neglected the tenths place and ended up adding 3.2 degrees instead of thirty-two degrees. The correct answer was 87.8 degrees Fahrenheit, which is…?"

"Hot enough for a tank top," Winnie replied snootily.

* * *

Press's studies weren't faring much better.

"And what type of cloud is this?" Professor Stratus asked, bringing up an image on the ground floor's projector. He stood by a laptop computer that was hooked up to a projector, while Press sat at a table where he was able to watch the projector screen intently. They'd dimmed the lights a little so the screen was more visible.

A large white cloud mass appeared the screen above a landscape of sparse trees and tan grass. The cloud mass was thick and circular around the edges, but flat on the top and bottom, causing the cloud to resemble a fluffy white glasses' lens.

"Cumulonimbus capillatus," Press said knowledgeably.

"Wrong," Professor Stratus stated. "It's altocumulus lenticularis."

"Nah, I'm pretty sure it's cumulonimbus capillatus," Press replied, trying to cover up his mistake. For a second he looked embarrassed, but he quickly covered it up with an air of absolute assurance.

"The cloud mass shown on the screen is clearly identifiable by its lens-shaped appearance. It's not nearly tall enough to be cumulonimbus capillatus." Professor Stratus was getting a little testy. Press was always trying to defend his own answer, no matter how obviously incorrect that answer was. The boy liked to pretend he was a know-it-all, even though he wasn't. "It's altocumulus lenticularis and you and I both know it."

Press remained silent. Professor Stratus spoke the truth. As much as Press wanted to argue his side of the case, he knew it would be futile. Instead, he just sighed and slumped down onto the table with his head tilted up to watch the next projection.

* * *

"Can I ask you a question?" Winnie murmured after successfully completing an equation. There was something on her mind that had been bugging her recently, and she wasn't sure who to talk to. Professors Nimbus and Cirrus were the only female role models she had here at the Weather Institute, so naturally, she decided to turn to one of them first.

Nimbus looked a little peeved by Winnie's interjection, but she decided to humor the girl. "Depends on the question," she replied, sitting down across the table from Winnie. She smoothed a stray lock of curly black hair out from her eyes and focused intently on Winnie.

"It's kinda complicated…" Winnie said, doing her best to explain.

Nimbus softened once she saw Winnie's reluctant expression and spoke more gently. "Don't worry. If you want to enlighten me, go ahead. If you don't, we'll move on." She started to push the chair back again so she could get up, but a quick glance from Winnie made her stop in her place.

Winnie sighed and bit her lip, averting her gaze again. Then, she finally summoned up the courage to speak. "It's just… there's this guy I know. He's pretty nice, I guess, but he's kind of annoying too, y'know?" She was starting to feel more sure of herself now; she stood up straight and looked at Nimbus while she spoke. "He just won't stop talking and he sometimes just gets on my nerves. Plus, he's always following me around… basically, I think he might like me. You know, _like_ like. As in, not like, like like, but like, _like_ like... You know what I mean?"

Nimbus blinked.

"Exactly," Winnie continued. "And I know he's just doing his thing or whatever, trying to woo me and stuff, but the truth is that I don't really want to be wooed! Well, I mean, I guess I do want to be wooed, but I don't want to be wooed by him is what I'm saying. If somebody else were to come wooing, I might accept their woos. It's not really about the woos so much as it is about the wooer, and well... this guy's just not the right wooer. As in, the real guy, not the figurative guy. I'm talking about the woos of the guy who exists and is currently trying to woo me.. I just can't return those woos. And I don't know how to break it to him, y'know?"

There was a short silence in which neither of them spoke. Then Nimbus cleared her throat. "I'm not exactly sure what you just said, but from what I can tell, you're having boy problems. There's a boy who has feelings for you, but you can't reciprocate those feelings, correct?"

"Yeah," Winnie murmured. She still looked uncomfortable; she kept fiddling with her ponytail.

It was obvious that the aforementioned 'boy' was Press, but Nimbus decided to play along. "I can relate," Nimbus assured Winnie slowly. "But in a… well... in a reversed manner. All I can say to you is that the sooner you tell him, the better... I know that if I was doing any wooing, I'd want to be told that my efforts were futile before I expended my energy on it. Sure, telling this boy the truth will hurt him, but not nearly as much as it would hurt both him and you in the long run."

Winnie nodded somberly.

* * *

Something had really been bugging Press lately, and he just couldn't ignore it. This thing was tearing him apart. He needed guidance, and Stratus seemed like the most normal role model here at the Weather Institute to seek sage wisdom from.

"Hey, Professor Stratus, can I ask you something?" Press mumbled after correctly identifying the cloud currently shown on the screen to be nimbostratus virga.

Stratus was a little exasperated at this point, and was about ready to wrap up the lesson. He was willing to at least listen to what Press had to say. "All right, what's the question?" Stratus asked. He sat down at a chair across the table from Press and folded his hands.

"Well… I don't know if you know this, but… there's this girl who I…" He seemed to be a little reluctant about letting his feelings. "This girl who I like," Press admitted.

Stratus restrained himself from saying _Yes, and that girl is Winnie, you've made it completely obvious over the past few weeks that you have a rampant teenage crush on her._ Instead, he simply nodded and continued to listen attentively.

"She's… just so pretty, and I've liked her for a really long time now, but I just don't know how to tell her. I'm not sure if she likes me back, because if she does, she sure doesn't show it, and I'm starting to feel like the chances of us ever being together are starting to slip away. She's so beautiful, and I'm afraid that if I wait any longer, it'll be too late, but I feel like it might not be the right time if I tell her too soon… it's complicated," Press said. All of the words spilled out of his mouth, as if he'd opened up the floodgates to his heart. Once he was finished, he looked like he regretted opening those floodgates. The wannabe know-it-all had just confessed his weaknesses.

Stratus frowned a little. So far Press had only mentioned things he liked about Winnie's appearance. Stratus had seen how longingly Press had stared at her. If that was all Press's love was based on, then a relationship between the two of him and Winnie might not last very long. But then again, that wasn't any of his business. If there really was a problem, Press would discover it on his own.

"I'm not exactly an expert on romance, but if you really do think you like this girl, I think the sooner you tell her, the better," Professor Stratus said. At first his words were faltering and unsteady, as if he wasn't sure what advice to give, but as time went on, his words became more certain and assured. "If she likes you, she's probably just waiting for you to tell her you think the same. If she doesn't like you… then, well, I guess she doesn't like you. You really haven't got anything to lose. But then again, I understand that these things are easier said than done," Stratus said.

Press let Stratus's words sink in a little bit. Then he nodded. "Thanks for your advice," he said, a small smile appearing on his lips.

"No problem," Stratus replied. "Class is dismissed."

Up on the second floor, Winnie was just being dismissed as well. As Professors Nimbus and Stratus both watched their respective students gather up their things and walk away, the two of them smiled grimly to themselves. Their own advice had seemed so wise. If only they could apply the same level of simple wisdom to their own lives. Stratus propped his arm up against the back of the chair and stared back at the beautiful nimbus clouds on the first floor's projector screen, while Nimbus stared out the second floor window to watch the stratus clouds high above.

If only.

* * *

**Not exactly the most action-packed episode, but it did allow me to explore a lot more with dialogue and relationships between the characters as Season 1 nears its finale. By the way, my birthday was yesterday. :D Late birthday reviews would be a great present!**

**Next Week: Episode 15- The Fickle Flu**


	15. S1E15: The Fickle Flu

**SEASON 1**

**What do you think of the new cover? I drew it myself on my new tablet after going through multiple, significantly crappier rough drafts. I was inspired by SoaringRaven (known here as Soaring0Raven) for giving me the birthday present of MY FIRST FANART EVER. ****FFnet doesn't allow me to post external links, but if you want to see his drawing, paste "i1099" into the URL and then ".photobucket" and then "********.com**/albums/g395/_SoaringRaven_/HeraandZiggy03_zps7f1d8a56" and then ".png". That should work. XD

* * *

Episode 15: The Fickle Flu

Frigid air swirled across the sky. Lightning speared through the clouds overhead. Thunder boomed. Then suddenly, the stormy clouds evaporated as sizzling rays of sunlight penetrated their way down to the earth below. The sky lightened into a tinted baby-blue color, but suddenly, a fierce wind blew a new layer of dark clouds back over the horizon. Within a few seconds of appearing, the clouds had already started to gush rain down upon the once sun-baked earth. As temperatures dropped abruptly, that rain froze into hail and sleet. The ground was covered in shards of ice, but the ice soon melted as the sun seared its way through the sky once more, only to be plunged into darkness by dreary clouds again.

This cycle of fickle weather had been continuing around the Fortree Woods area for the past two hours. The citizens of Fortree City were just out of the elements' reach, and they watched the zany weather conditions fearfully. They speculated that it could have been the result of imminent climate change, or perhaps the apocalypse had arrived.

But to those living in the weather institute, there was only one conceivable explanation: Cast had the flu.

Hera the Skitty scampered as fast as her stubby little kitten legs would take her, all the way to the tall tree that housed Mother Swellow's nest. She leaped up and dug her claws into the bark, scrambling her way up the trunk like a squirrel in her haste. When she finally made it to the nest's branch, she was sure not to knock anything out like she had before.

Gutter's head popped up and out of the nest and his face lightened up in surprise. _Hera! What're you doing here?_ The Taillow chirped cheerfully, hopping up and down.

_Cast is sick_, Hera explained somberly. _Everyone in the Weather Institute's afraid to give him any medicine because all they have is human medicine, and I thought you might now some sort of wild remedy to cure him, or at least help him feel a little better. As of now, Cirrus has just been feeding him water as a placebo._

Gutter pondered her question for a second, sobering once he heard Cast was ill. Then he asked: _What's a placebo?_

Hera smiled grimly. _In this case it means something that Cast thinks will cure him, but actually won't. We don't think the placebo will last very long, so we need a real cure._

The little Taillow frowned, thinking for a moment. Then he flapped his wings with excitement. _I know!_ he exclaimed. _There're some herbs and berries that mom showed us in the woods one time when my brother Prickle got sick. It's been a while, but… I think I remember where they are._ He looked at her hopefully.

Hera grinned. _Thanks so much!_

* * *

A little Weather Pokemon was resting on a stool in the Weather Institute's second floor. He used a salmon-colored pillow as a cushion, and a wet washcloth served as a makeshift blanket. The Castform's eyes were lidded, fluttering now and then but never quite opening all the way. He had a burning fever. His color always seemed to be shifting, but never quite fully making the change. One second his body would seem to be turning orange, the color of this Sun Form, but then he'd switch into a light purple color reminiscent of his Snow Form, only to fade into a light periwinkle that resembled his Rain Form before reverting back to his normal dull white body color.

Professor Cirrus was seated at a chair beside him, gently spoon-feeding him sips of water from a spoon to keep him to keep his spirits high and to keep him from getting too parched. Since the Weather Institute didn't have any Pokemon medicine handy, this was the best they could do.

Hera tiptoed lightly in the room. She carried her Zigzagoon wind-up toy in her mouth gingerly and examined Cast worriedly from afar. Hera cared about his well-being, but not so much that she'd get too close and risk catching that nasty flu herself.

Still, she steeled herself and drew closer to the sick patient.

_How're you holding up?_ she asked, dropping the Zigzagoon toy at the foot of the chair. Rain was pouring down intermittently outside due to Cast's influence on the weather.

Cast stayed silent for a while. Then his eyes fluttered open a little. _I'm doing all right,_ he replied weakly.

_That's good,_ Hera mewed with concern. _The most important thing for you to do is stay strong._

There was a dramatic pause, then the two of them broke out into laughter.

_Wow, this is kind of stupid,_ Hera said.

_Definitely,_ Cast chuckled raspily. Hera had added a glint of amusement to his sickly-looking eyes. _Can we please stray away from the medical drama genre? I don't want things to get too corny._ He laughed, but it soon turned into a halting cough. _I'll be alright. You sent Gutter to go find a remedy, right?_

_Right._ Hera nodded, sobering again. _And I also brought Ziggy with me to keep you company._ She prodded him towards the leg of Cast's stool with a paw. _He's a good friend. He'll never leave your side, he'll never give you grief, and he'll always be there for you. Plus, you can keep him as close as you want and you don't have to worry about infecting him because he's made of plastic!_

_You really did think of everything, didn't you?_ Cast asked with weak smile.

* * *

Gutter scurried through the forest as lightning crackled overhead. Every time he heard a thunderclap he jumped into the air with fear, but he couldn't look back now. He had a job to complete.

The first thing Gutter did was recall the day when Mother Swellow had led him and his siblings to the medicinal berries and herbs. It wasn't too difficult, seeing as he hadn't lived very long, so he didn't have much to remember. In addition, it always helped Gutter to remember things in terms of scent.

After applying this, he remembered the day well: Prickle had been huddled up in a corner of the home-nest, sniffling and sneezing. He had red eyes and carried the malodorous scent of rotten-worm. Then Mother Swellow had swooped in, smelling faintly of pine-needles, like she always did. She had taken Prickle under her wing and led all of her chicks out of the nest on a journey across the musty-dirt. Gutter remembered detecting a whiff of mint coming from one of the prickle-bushes. It was like a cool breeze carried on a chilly spring day, a sugary-sharp aroma so refreshing that it could rouse anyone out of a stupor as easily as if they'd been dunked into a salty-clean stream…

_Getta hold of yourself!_ Gutter muttered to himself, waggling his head from side to side. It was all too easy to get lost in aromatic vaults of his own memory, but he had to focus on the task at hand. He remembered the scent of the medicinal herbs; it was a minty aroma, and the berries weren't too far away.

A bright beam of sunlight from the fickle weather shone directly into Gutter's eyes, blinding him temporarily. In this moment, his sense of smell was heightened, and he was able to catch a whiff of mint. As his eyesight returned, he was easily able to hurry off in the direction of the scent while the temperature dropped to freezing temperatures.

Gutter remembered how Prickle had nicked himself on one of the herb bushes, which is actually how the Taillow had gotten its name. This time around, Gutter was careful to stay away from thorns as he used his beak to pluck the round, sugary-sharp smelling leaves off of the herb bushes. He also hastily picked a few of the lavender-colored berries that he knew to have curative properties, and headed off to the Weather Institute as thunder boomed overhead.

Hera was aready waiting to meet Gutter at the doors of the Weather Institute. He handed off the herbs and berries to her, and she scampered up the stairs to the second floor with them wedged tightly between her teeth. She chewed them into a mushy paste, then spat the mixture out into the glass of water that Cirrus was using to spoon-feed Cast. The young professor looked surprised, but Hera gave her a quick, reassuring nod.

Cirrus reluctantly mixed up the chewed herbs and berries with her spoon. The result was orchid-tinted, sweet-smelling water flecked with specks of green herbs. She carefully ladled some of the water with her spoon and held it up to Cast's lips.

The Castform's tiny pink tongue tasted the mixture with hesitance. Then his mouth opened and he allowed Cirrus to feed him the rest of the water. He swallowed it bit by bit until the spoon was dry, then he exhaled with satisfaction.

It took some time, but after a about an hour his temperature had lowered to a reasonable level, and his body had stopped shifting colors. The erratic weather patterns outside had come to a halt, leaving the day just as it had been before Cast had caught the flu.

_Looks like Gutter's medicine did the trick,_ Hera said, padding over to Cast and curling herself up at the foot of the stool. She batted Ziggy with a paw playfully.

_Yep,_ Cast said. He smiled, no longer looking sickly. He turned over in his bed a little and looked out the window. _I really owe both of you one._

Hera shook her head. _It's nothing. Just remember not to fly around in chilly temperatures so often. While your Snow Form may already be cold, that doesn't mean it can't _get_ a cold._

Cast laughed at her joke, thankful for such a speedy recovery.

* * *

Gutter pranced his way back to the nest, hopping around with sheer joy. The sky was cleared, his mission was cleared, and so were Cast's sinuses. Everything had gone just swell. Gutter had never felt like more of a hero in his life. When he got back to the nest, he didn't waste any time telling his siblings all about what had happened.

_—And I was the only one who could save him!_ Gutter chirped, standing above all the other Taillow chicks at the edge of the nest._ So I bravely jumped out of the nest and hurried off to the rescue! I remembered that one time you were sick, Prickle, and how we found that minty bush with the lavender berries, and—_

_What's all this about bushes and berries?_ Mother Swellow cooed gently as she landed on the branch next to the nest.

_Uncle Cast was sick, and I helped save him by finding the same minty leaves and lavender berries you used to cure Prickle when he was sick!_ Gutter declared proudly, puffing out his chest.

Mother Swellow paused, and frowned. _But Gutter, I didn't use those to cure Prickle. We used ruby-red berries and prickly leaves for him, remember? The minty leaves and lavender berries were for your indigestion problems._

_Oh_ was all Gutter could say.

Maybe placebos did work after all.

* * *

**Hehe. In other news, the next episode will be the season finale, and like this season's opener, it'll be extra long. I'm not sure how long it'll take me to finish, so keep your eyes peeled. I will tell you this though: one character will leave the current cast. *cue dramatic sound effect***

**Next Week: Episode 16- [SEASON 1 FINALE]**


	16. S1E16: Goodbye

**SEASON 1 FINALE**

**Here it is. The Season 1 Finale. It is somewhat cumulative, so I'd suggest making sure you've read all the episodes in Season 1 before moving on. It's much longer than the other episodes, so grab your popcorn and have a seat. Who will stay? Who will leave? Am I making this way too dramatic? It's time to find out.**

* * *

Episode 16: Goodbye

Professor Cirrus let her gaze wander over the horizon line. She stood at the Weather Institute's entrance. The sliding doors had parted to let the day's cool breeze wash over her face. She looked… pained. The young professor stared out, thinking of all of the places she had yet to visit, yet to see. She wondered how her sister was faring in the bustling region of Unova. She had to admit, she felt somewhat jealous. As she'd admitted to Cumulus on New Year's Day, she'd never been out of the Fortree Area. She longed to travel, but she was also afraid.

Hera sat curled up in her cyan cushion with Ziggy at her side. She nuzzled up against the plastic toy, purring softly but sadly. The little windup toy was precious to her, but she had never truly forgotten what life was like before Ziggy. Before meeting her friend Cast. Before the Weather Institute. Some things were hazy. On the day she'd arrived here, she remembered nothing. But now she remembered a dark-skinned, smiling face. A bright sunset. She could not forget.

Cumulus sat at his chair with a stack of pancakes laid out before him. But he wasn't hungry for once. He sipped from his glass of orange juice forlornly. The meal reminded him of the meals his family would always cook. His mother made the best pancakes, almost as thin as crêpes and drenched in sweet syrup. He missed those meals. He missed his family. He had received a call from his sister earlier this morning while he was asleep. She didn't leave a message. Cumulus wasn't quite sure how to reply. After drifting away from his family so long, he couldn't think of any way to truly reattach himself with them. Keeping one foot with his family and the other in the Weather Institute was impossible. He would have to choose.

Press sat at a desk in his room on the second floor, thoughtfully and anxiously scrawling out sentences on red paper. _Dear Winnie:_ _You're almost as perfect as I am! _one read. He frowned, sighed, and crumpled up the paper, throwing it in the wastebasket. He had to think of just the right thing to say to Winnie. After being spurred on by Stratus to confess his feelings for her, he'd been fearing the moment when he would have to do so. He wasn't sure what he would do if… no, he couldn't think about it.

Stratus shuffled through slides of weather phenomena on his projector screen. His old professor's words echoed in his mind. Stratus had proven his class wrong by making a Pokemon that reacted with and could alter the weather. He'd proven him and his professor right. But now… well, he had to admit, his life was still empty. He felt like his role here at the Weather Institute had been completed. What was there left for him here?

Cast floated at the very top of the Weather Institute, above the roof. From here he could almost see Fortree Woods in its entirety. He stared for a while, thinking of the inhabitants living beneath the leafy canopy. There was Mother Swellow and her chicks, Gutter included. There was Surskit Lake, which was teeming with life, including a fabled Feebas. There were the niggling Nuzleaf Brothers, who always seemed to show up at the least opportune time. And finally, there was the dark force behind the Shadow Grove. The Treetop Tyrant. Cast remembered him as a shadowy figure adorned with a thousand tiny sparkling pinpoints. Cast didn't know who the Treetop Tyrant was, and he didn't want to find out, either. He had no intention of going back into the Shadow Grove. Still, Cast felt left out. All of the Pokemon in that forest belonged in the forest. It was their home. Even Hera had come from somewhere beyond the Weather Institute. Cast, on the other hand, came from this very Institute. He'd been artificially crafted. Sometimes, he just felt like he didn't belong…

Nimbus sat on the bed in her room on the second floor, combing out her long, curly black hair. She hadn't forgotten Stratus's sharp words after she'd nagged him about his weather check a few days previous. In fact, she hadn't really spoken to him much since then. After all, she was sure he didn't want to talk to somebody as fussy and _anal-retentive_ as she was. Who even used that word? Nobody except Professor Stratus, apparently. But none of that mattered anymore. Today was different. Today was special.

* * *

As Stratus compared the results of his Weather chart to those on the projector screen, he heard clacking footsteps behind him that could only be Winnie wearing her high-heels. Stratus sighed and turned around, ready to remind Winnie to be careful not to scuff up the clean, tiled floor. However, when he turned around he was met with quite a surprise.

Before him stood Professor Nimbus, dressed in a beautiful scarlet dress that fell to her ankles. She wore slight high heels, just enough to give her a little more height… not that she needed it. Her long curly hair had been combed into shimmering, wavy tresses and… was that lipstick? No, it couldn't be. At any rate, Nadia Nimbus looked more dazzling than Stratus had ever seen her. Her eyes were wide, like a Deerling caught in the headlights.

It took a while for Professor Stratus to realize that his mouth was open. He closed it hastily and sputtered, "Just where are you going?"

Nimbus bit her lip, as if a little bit hesitant to reply. Wait… Professor Nimbus? Hesitant? What was the world coming to? The tall professor tossed her hair and reassumed her calm, collected demeanor. She folded her arms in front of her and responded, "I have someone to meet in Lilycove City today. I thought you knew."

"What? You never told me! Nadia, I have a right to know this kind of thing!" Stratus stammered.

"Really, Solomon? I don't think so, it's just a little excursion. Wouldn't you say you're just being a tad, oh, I don't know… _anal-retentive_ about all this?" Nimbus replied smugly before stalking off.

Stratus was fuming. Nimbus was using his own words against him. So that was what this was all about. Ever since he'd called her out on being so fussy about the daily weather report, Nimbus had been giving him the cold shoulder. Stratus hadn't thought anything of it up until now.

Stratus gathered his things, putting his computer to sleep and shutting off the projector. He left the dark room and hurried out onto the main section of the Weather Institute's first floor, getting past an alarmed Professor Cirrus before working his way out the door.

The last thing Professor Stratus saw was a cloud of dust and smoke as a car in the distance drove away and out of sight, taking Professor Nimbus with it. All he saw was a license plate number as it rode leisurely away.

* * *

"Where are you going?" Winnie asked nosily as Professor Stratus searched for the keys to the Weather Institute's van. She stood in the middle of the Institute's first floor with her hands folded innocently behind her as she watched Stratus peek underneath the stools.

"To Lilycove City" was Stratus's impatient reply.

Winnie's eyes lit up. "Lilycove City!? You mean… the city of _love?_" She clasped her hands before her and twirled dramatically. "I went there once when I was little," she swooned. "They have the most beautiful beaches, the cutest boys, the ritziest restaurants, the cutest boys, the snazziest shopping malls, and the _cutest boys!_"

"City of love?" Press asked, poking his head out from a nearby doorframe. He grinned. What better place to confess his feelings for Winnie than at the most romantic site in Hoenn? She wouldn't be able to resist him. Press imagined a passionate evening spent on the beach, and then maybe they'd come close and-

"Preston, you're drooling; it isn't becoming at all," Cumulus said as he bustled through the doorway. Hera and Cast were tagging along behind him. "What's all this about Lilycove?" he asked. "My aunt and uncle live there, you know. At least, they did. I'm not sure if they do anymore."

"They must be so lucky!" Winnie exclaimed, sliding over to Cumulus's side ecstatically. "Lilycove City has the most precious proposals, the most marvelous marriages and the happiest honeymoons! Not to mention the cutest boys! Your aunt and uncle must live a life filled with romance! It'd be hard not to, living in the city of love!"

Stratus was fuming. All of this talk about Lilycove being the city of love was only making him more frustrated with Nimbus for having eloped there for a date. What in the world did she think she was doing, meeting up with somebody in the city of love!? Finally, Professor Stratus found his keys behind one of the table legs and hurried off to the front door, but he was stopped by Winnie's hopeful voice.

"Can we come with you to Lilycove?"

The middle-aged professor turned around to see them all staring at him expectantly. He looked at all of their faces, one by one, but it was Press's that really got him. The boy looked so eager. Stratus had advised Press to tell Winnie how he felt about her, and a trip to Lilycove city would be the perfect opportunity. He couldn't let Press down.

"Sure," Stratus sighed.

Winnie squealed.

* * *

The ride to Lilycove City wasn't long. The van was packed: Stratus and Cirrus sat in the front seats; Press and Winnie sat in the middle seats; and Cumulus, Cast, and Hera sat in the back seats. They passed through Fortree City after a few minutes. Cirrus stared up at the treehouses overhead. She'd lived in that city during the entirety of her childhood. Seeing it again made her miss home… but it also made her desire to explore all the more passionate.

Stratus was the first one to see Lilycove City up ahead. The looming department store stood out spectacularly among the other buildings. Cirrus rolled down the windows to breathe in the fresh ocean air. It was morning time in the city, and as the pulled up they could see people strolling down the streets, chatting, getting coffee, eating breakfast, holding hands. Stratus hated to admit it, but this truly was the city of love.

"Can we stay there?" Winnie pleaded, pointing to a snazzy-looking hotel down the street.

"No," Stratus grumbled. "We're only staying here as long as we have to before I find Professor Nimbus." He pulled up to the grand department store's parking lot and vied for a parking space with many other vehicles. For the next fifteen minutes, Professor Stratus forgot about Lilycove City being called the city of love: more like the city of rude drivers. They finally slipped into a parking spot just in the nick of time, and Stratus quickly ushered them out as the cars behind them honked angrily.

"You all feel free to go shopping or watch a contest or something. I'll call you on your cell phones, and when I do, meet me back here at the van, alright?"

Cirrus and Cumulus nodded. Cast bobbed up and down excitedly. Hera purred with excitement. Winnie… well, Winnie had already dashed off to the department store, with Press trying desperately to keep up. Hera raced after them, scurrying under parked cars and leaping over speed bumps on her way.

Stratus watched as everybody parted ways, except for him and Cast. The two of them were left at the car. Cast was floating by Stratus expectantly, but Stratus just waved him away. Cast was insistent and continued to sidle up next to Stratus.

"Fine," Stratus sighed, "Let's see if we can find Professor Nimbus," Stratus said. Cast nodded, and the two of them hit the streets.

The sidewalks of Lilycove City were crowded with pedestrians, single and coupled. As they strolled down the sidewalk past the couples, Cast could detect a little bit of heartache in Stratus's walk. The young Castform softened a little. Now it became clearer to him why Stratus was on this excursion in the first place.

Finally, the two of them stopped in front of an ostentatious restaurant titled_ The Graceful Gardevoir. _"This is it," Stratus murmured. In the parking lot was the very same car that he'd seen drive off through the smoke: the license plate number even matched as well.

Professor Stratus burst through the front doors of the restaurant with Cast floating hesitantly behind him. But after stepping into the restaurant, even Stratus halted in his tracks a little. The restaurant was warm, and the lights were dim. Hubbub of relaxed voices and clinking glass could be heard above some soft jazz music. This restaurant was astoundingly fancy; Stratus didn't know who Nimbus's mystery beau was, but he certainly had money, that much was certain.

Stratus stepped up to the reception desk to speak with the waiter, but the waiter held up his hand apologetically. "I'm sorry, but unless you have a reservation, we're full for the night," he said.

"I just have to meet with a friend," Stratus muttered, but the waiter held out a hand and stopped him. "I'm sorry, but unless you have a reservation I can't let you in," the waiter said in a firmer tone.

That was when Professor Stratus saw them. Professor Nimbus had her back to him, but that sparkling red dress and those curly black locks were unmistakable. He watched as Nimbus got up, wiping her mouth with a napkin and saying something to her date before walking off to the restroom. She hadn't seen Stratus.

Once Nimbus had gone, her date looked over at Stratus suspiciously. He was tall and well-built, with dirty blonde hair that was swept to one side and an expensive suit. Now he could see how Nimbus was affording to eat at such a stylish restaurant; this beau was probably paying for it all one-handedly. Stratus's spirits dwindled, and he turned back to the waiter.

"Never mind, we'll be going now," Stratus mumbled. "Come on Cast, let's go."

Cast frowned as Stratus left the shop. He had seen how much Stratus had wanted to find Nimbus, and now that he'd found her, he was just giving up! All that Cast could see standing in the way of Stratus and Nimbus was her beau. If only there was a way to crash that date…

Then it hit him. Cast smiled mischievously, but in the back of his mind he was anxious. He knew he was taking an enormous risk, yet it was too good of an idea to resist. He knew someone who was perfect at crashing dates… two someones, to be precise. So Cast did something he'd sworn to never do again.

He headed to the Shadow Grove.

* * *

"Hurry up Press, there's no time to waste!" Winnie squealed as she dragged Press along with her through the enormous Lilycove Department Store. There were kiosks and salesmen at ever corner, and Winnie had to spend at least ten seconds at each one to either survey the merchandise or buy something before dashing over to the next sale. Press and Hera were struggling to keep up with her.

Finally, the three of them arrived at an escalator. Press stepped on behind Winnie, glad to be taking a break from the shopping madness. He was already carrying two bags full of trinkets and clothing that Winnie had bought. But he didn't mind. Soon, this was all going to pay off… once he told Winnie how he really felt about her.

"Hey, be careful with those bags!" Winnie shouted over her shoulder to Press. "Make sure the necklaces don't break or anything, kay?"

Press stuck his tongue out at her while she wasn't looking. Winnie was pretty, but boy, she could be a major brat sometimes.

Hera hopped up onto the handrail with her feline grace as it glided up to the next floor along. Press's disgust with Winnie behavior quickly dissolved, causing him to smile at how beautiful she looked while she was happy. And if there was anywhere where Winnie was truly happy, it was while she was at the mall.

As they ascended the escalator, Press watched the people on the descending escalator next to them. A dark-skinned girl about his age stood with her hand resting on the moving handrail, staring out at all of the shops somewhat disdainfully. He looked at her for a moment, and she looked at his direction as well.

The girl gasped, looking shocked. Press furrowed his brow, unsure of what had happened. He nearly tripped on the ground as they arrived at the top of the escalator. He watched as the girl on the descending elevator grew smaller and smaller in his sight, still staring in his direction with a startled look on her face.

"Uh, Winnie, I think we should maybe go back down. That girl looked like she-"

"This is no time to be checking out girls, Press!" Winnie chided. "The Silph Store is having a 30% off sale! This is too good of a chance to miss!" With that she raced off, leaving a playful Hera and a grumbling Press with no option but to follow.

* * *

As the sun started to fall from its peak in the sky, two people strolled down the sidewalk towards the beachside houses of Lilycove City.

"I never knew you had an aunt and uncle living in Lilycove City," Cirrus said quietly as she walked with Professor Cumulus.

"Yes…" he muttered in return. "That's because, well, I don't quite keep in touch very much with my family anymore, as you know."

"Right… That was your New Year's Resolution, wasn't it? To keep in touch with them," Cirrus offered helpfully.

Cumulus nodded. "And yours was to travel, if I'm not mistaken?" Before Cirrus could respond, the two of them arrived at their destination. It was a small cottage, not too far away from the city to be inconvenient but not to far from the beach either. In short, it was the perfect location for a perfect little house.

The two of them stepped up to the front porch and Professor Cumulus rapped the front door sharply. They stood there for a few moments before Cirrus noticed a little slip of paper taped to the doorbell.

_Sailing off for Mossdeep for a vacation. We should be back by March 5. _

"For Groudon's sake, were they thinking, pasting a note to their front door saying they were gone like that?" Cumulus sputtered. "Might as well put up a sign saying _Dear Thieves, nobody will be living in this house for the next two days. Feel free to break in and rob us!" _He looked over the slip of paper again. "Two days gone… Back by the Fifth of March… that means they must have just left today! If they're boarding a ship there, we might be able to catch them just in time to tell them we're here so they don't have to waste their time and money sailing all the way around to the Weather Institute!"

He and Cumulus shared one quick glance, then hurried off together towards the Lilycove Port.

* * *

Cast shuddered a little. Maybe this hadn't been such a good idea. After flying at top speed for the past eleven minutes, he'd arrived at the Shadow Grove in even less time than it had taken them to drive to Lilycove in the first place. He floated close to the ground, breathless as he slowly made his way further into the grove. The trees grew taller as he progressed, their branches more thick: just as he remembered.

Finally, when he came to the darkest part of the Grove, Cast yelled out loudly. "Hello? Nuzleaf Brothers?" The Nuzleaf Brothers always had a knack of showing up when he needed them the least. He could only hope that they had a knack of showing up when he needed them most as well.

Finally, he heard the creaking of branches in the distance as something came swinging towards him. Multiple things, by the sound of it. Cast's heart pounded with anticipation; then it stopped. He'd recognize that patterning of sparkling specks anywhere. It swung through the trees, landing with a heavy thump on the ground.

Cast had gotten more than he'd bargained for. The Treetop Tyrant was here again.

The Nuzleaf Brothers were the first to step forward into the light, but they left their boss back in the shadows. They wasted no time prancing up to Cast and teasing him like always.

_Well, who do we have here?_ one snickered.

_We never thought _you'd_ come to _us_!_ the other said in a nasally voice.

Cast didn't pay any attention to them. His focus remained on the third and final figure who still hid in the shade of the trees. The Triple T was just as Cast remembered him: a dark silhouette dotted with many tiny flecks that shined dully when the filtered light from up above reflected off of them. Only this time another one of the Triple T's features was visible: piercing yellow eyes.

_What brings you back to my part of the forest?_ the creature boomed, speaking in the teeth-rattlingly deep voice that Cast remembered well.

_I… I have a proposal to make,_ Cast stammered, turning back to the two Nuzleaf Brothers. _I have a… a friend of mine in Lilycove right now who needs to crash a party, so to speak. It's a date, at a restaurant called The Graceful Gardevoir. But it won't be easy, it's a high-class posh restaurant with wary waiters all over the place. I couldn't think of anybody m-more suited to the job than you two… so I wanted to see if we could strike a deal._ Cast shuddered. His idea seemed worse with every second that passed by.

It was The Triple T who spoke in response. _What kind of deal?_

_Any t-type of deal you want,_ Cast replied meekly.

Suddenly, the Treetop Tyrant took a step forward. The hundreds of tiny shining dots quivered as the creature stepped. Then it took another step, exposing the tip of a pointed nose to the sunlight. Then the Treetop Tyrant stepped out of the shadows fully, standing over Cast imposingly.

He had sharp yellow eyes that seemed to look down on Cast almost with wry amusement. On the end of each of his tree-like brown arms was a formation of three fan-shaped leaves. He stood on two thick brown legs and an enormous, ruffled mane of voluminous dirty white hair flowed from his face all the way down his back and onto his shoulders and chest. The Treetop Tyrant was a Shiftry. But that made sense, given that his minions were the Nuzleaf Brothers. But that wasn't what took Cast aback.

Woven within all of the hairs of his white mane were a hundred tiny stones. They were all different colors, creating the image that the Triple T was covered in flecks of a dark rainbow. Even his hands were decorated with at least three stone-embedded rings on each finger, before the finger fanned out into a leaf. Cast had never seen so much decoration on a single Pokemon before. The Triple T looked, for all the world, like a filthy rich mob boss.

The tyrant Shiftry leaned closer to Cast until his long nose nearly touched the Weather Pokemon's forehead. _I'll tell you what,_ he boomed with the same dark, wry smile. Cast grimaced: the Triple T's breath smelled like bay leaves. _The Nuzleaf Brothers will take up your deal… if in return, you come back to the Shadow Grove when they call you and fulfill a little… errand for us once the right day comes. Deal?_

Cast gulped and nodded hastily. _Deal!_ he exclaimed. Anything to get away from the Triple T's intimidating presence.

The Treetop Tyrant looked to his two minions, who nodded in return. _Show us the way,_ the Nuzleaf Brothers said to Cast in unison. Cast sighed with relief and hurried back to Lilycove with them following, swinging from the tree branches. As they made their way back to Lilycove, all Cast could hope was that he hadn't made a deal with the devil.

* * *

Winnie strolled out of the department store with two bags full of purchases in each arm, while Press struggled to keep up with her. His arms were heaped with bags of clothing, and Hera was perched at the very top of the leaning tower. It was obvious that she was enjoying the ride.

The fashionable girl led the lovestruck boy down to the beach, which wasn't far from the department store at all. There, they both set down their bags and sat up on the sand. The two of them watched the sun slowly set as the day made its transition into evening, and they enjoyed seeing Hera run back and forth from the waves up on the shore.

Press watched Winnie as she smiled. Well, it was now or never. His fears seemed to wash away just like the sand of the beach. The mood was perfect. They were in the city of love. It was evening. They were on the beach. She was a perfect girl for a perfect guy. This couldn't be any better.

"Winnie," Press said, his voice cracking. He winced, clearing his throat and continued. "We've, uh… we've been friends for kind of a while now, well I mean, we've known each other for a while now. Although I'd say we're friends too. And I just wanted to tell you… you're great. I really like you a lot."

"Thanks, Press," Winnie said, not taking her eyes off of the water. "You're pretty great too. Like, kind of like a brother to me. Like, a really annoying brother who will never leave me alone, but yeah, a brother I guess." She laughed.

He cringed. No, she wasn't supposed to think of him like a brother. This wasn't how things were supposed to go! "I wasn't really talking about a friendship that way," he said hastily. "I like you, as in, the kind of like where I would ask you out."

There it was. Out in the open. Winnie's eyes widened a little. Nimbus had talked with her about this moment, but she hadn't expected it to come so soon.

"Ew…. no!" she blurted out. "No Press, I don't want to go out with you! I'm sorry, but I don't think of you that way! Like… no, I mean… I'm sorry, but no, I don't want to!" she said, trying to cover up her mistake. She stood up and dusted the sand off of her dress, starting to walk away.

Press stood up and followed after her. "What do you mean?" he asked incredulously. Did she just say no? Why wouldn't anyone want to go out with him? "What are you talking about, that doesn't even make sense! You can't just do that!" he shouted.

"I'm sorry, but no!" Winnie shouted in reply. She kept walking, and eventually Press gave up trying to follow her. Instead, he turned to the bags of clothes and kicked them over, spilling their contents onto the beach and kicking up sand all over them. Then he stormed off in the opposite direction.

* * *

Two professors arrived at the port hastily, looking everywhere but finding nothing. An enormous ship was just about to set sail on a cruise around the tip of Hoenn all the way to Mauville City: a rather roundabout method, but it was intended to be more about the experience than the destination. Professor Cirrus feared the worst, but she didn't dare say anything just in case it brought down Professor Cumulus's hopes. Finally, Cumulus spotted someone in the crowd.

"There! That's them!" he shouted, pushing his way through the throng of people getting ready to board the giant ship. Cirrus slipped through after him and the two of them soon arrived before an old couple. The woman had graying blonde hair that was tied up into a bun and the balding man beside her had a beard and mustache. Both of them were rather portly.

The woman took a while to recognize Cumulus, but when she did, her face creased up into a smile. "Carson!" she squealed, dashing up to hug her nephew. Cumulus looked rather embarrassed, but still returned the hug. When his aunt pulled away from him, she immediately asked: "What are you doing here in Lilycove? I tried to call you this morning to tell you that we were leaving and we wanted you to come with us, but you didn't pick up!" she exclaimed. "And who's this, your girlfriend?"

Cumulus shook his head quickly. "No, no! She's just a colleague, nothing more." Cirrus frowned a little, stepping away. "And- wait, you wanted me to come with you?" Cumulus asked incredulously.

"Why of course!" his aunt declared, grabbing his hand fondly. "You live so close by, and we had an extra cruise ticket so I just had to invite you to come with it! We haven't given the ticket away you know, you could still come along!"

The rotund Professor sputtered surprised nonsense for a while before finally getting out his reply. "I have duties to fulfill back at the Weather Institute and you know that! As much as I'd like to take a little excursion, you both know I can just go off on some sort of vacation while there's work to be done, a professor can't just go gallivanting off wherever he pleases, it simply isn't-"

"I'll go," Profesor Cirrus said, stepping forward.

* * *

Press kicked up sand every which way as he stomped along the beach in the opposite direction from Winnie. Hera nipped playfully at his heels, having the time of her live here out on the sand. She was completely oblivious to the fact that Press and Winnie were having the worst time of their lives; or at least, so they thought in the heat of the moment.

As he walked, Press shook his head in disbelief. Part of him scoffed at Winnie, saying she was missing out on a prize like him, but the other part felt worried and insecure. "How could she have said no?" he shouted out to the waves. "Everything was perfect! _I'm_ perfect!" He kicked a rock out into the ocean.

He decided to head back into the city to see if anybody was back at Stratus's car yet. This city would hold nothing but bad memories for him now, and he wanted out.

On the way there, he was stopped by a girl who was also walking down the sidewalk. He was about to grumble at her for getting in his way, but then he looked up and saw that it was the same girl he'd seen at the mall that day. Dark skin and flouncy curly hair tied up in a ponytail behind her head. She stood as tall as he was, maybe a little taller.

Press looked at her for a moment, then shook his head and continued to walk. No, he wasn't going to get involved with any more girls, especially not here in the so-called "City of love". Yeah right, some city of love this was. After his experience with Winnie, Press didn't even want to take the time to speak with this girl.

"Sorry, I'm not interested," he said, trying to worm his way past her. But she stopped him with her hand and looked him eyes, saying three words that shocked Press.

"That's my Skitty."

* * *

_This is the place,_ Cast whispered, floating by the window of the restaurant where Nimbus was dining. Stratus was just where he'd left him thirty minutes ago; sitting on a bench right outside the restaurant, moping around alone while no doubt racking his brain for a solution to the situation.

The Nuzleaf Brothers followed Cast, tiptoeing along the roof top and swinging down by their arms to get a good look at what the inside of the restaurant looked like.

_Pretty fancy!_ one said nasally.

_Pretty expensive too, by the looks of it,_ the other added. The two of them snickered and flipped themselves back up onto the roof and out of sight, awaiting Cast's next order. It wasn't hard to tell that they didn't enjoy taking directions from the Castform, but the Triple T had told them to, and there was no arguing with the Triple T.

_You saw the lady in the sparkling red dress, right?_ Cast asked. The Nuzleaf Brothers nodded. _She's the one I was talking about, Professor Nimbus, and the guy sitting across from her is her date._

_So, what is it that you want from us, huh?_ one of the Nuzleaf Brothers asked. He tapped a foot and looked at Cast impatiently.

_I want you to sabotage the date,_ Cast said, already getting a little excited with the thrill of the idea and the risks involved. _I don't care how, the two of you probably know how to do that better than I would anyway. The only ground rule is don't hurt anybody. Oh, except Nimbus's date. Do whatever you want with him. _Cast felt a little mean, but come on, this was all for Stratus's sake! And how many times in his life would he ever get to see a date sabotaged as spectacularly as this? If it was going to happen, it had to be all-out.

The Nuzleaf Brothers looked at each other mischievously as soon as Cast told them that they could decide how to ruin the date. Without another word, they swung back underneath the rooftop and disappeared. Cast took in a deep breath and floated down after them to see what was about to happen.

Professor Nimbus and her beau had just finished their main course a while ago and were currently waiting for dessert to arrive. The man Nimbus was with seemed quite happy to be there, but Nimbus herself looked a little uncomfortable. She kept glancing over her shoulder at the entrance to the restaurant, as if waiting for someone to step in.

Then Cast realized it. Maybe she was waiting for Professor Stratus! She'd missed him when he'd stepped into the restaurant early before because he'd had inopportune timing: just as he had entered, she had been getting up to use the restroom. Could it be possible that Nimbus was waiting for Professor Stratus to arrive? But why? Cast shook his head. He'd never understand romance.

Finally, Nimbus's dessert came on a silver platter with a beautiful, polished dome-shaped cover. The waiter whipped off the cover with a flourish: and Nimbus's date screamed. One of the Nuzleaf Brothers had just jumped out of the dessert platter. How he'd got there, Cast would never know. All he knew was that the sabotage had begun.

After leaping out from underneath the silver cover, the Nuzleaf dashed along the table, digging his feet into the tablecloth and dragging it along with him until it slid to the floor, causing all of the plates and silverware on top to crash along with it. The Nuzleaf Brother hopped off of the table just in time, causing another couple to shriek in alarm.

The Nuzleaf picked up a tall glass of water and hopped on the very top of an empty chair, spinning around on one foot and letting the water spill out everywhere, pinwheel-style. Couples were rained on and they scrambled out of their chairs to leave the restaurant.

Suddenly, the lights went off. The only source of light remaining were the little candles lit near the windows of the restaurant. The lights flickered on again, then flickered off, and on again periodically. From outside, Cast watched the scene unfold like a bad stop-motion animation movie. Finally, as he caught flashes of people trying to escape the restaurant, he saw the culprit. The other Nuzleaf Brother was messing with the light switches over in the corner as his brother wrecked the restaurant. The Nuzleaf toppled chairs, pounced on dresses and spilled water everywhere.

Then finally the Nuzleaf Brother who had been manning the light switch left his post, swinging his way from shelf to shelf all the way up to the grand chandelier. He swung back and forth on it like a swing, causing many a date to faint. Then finally, the cord snapped and the chandelier plummeted down into the center of a table, landing right in front of Nimbus's beau and scaring the masculinity right out of him. He ran off like a little girl, bawling and holding a napkin to his eyes.

Cast sighed with relief. Okay, now he could just step in and-

Oh. It looked like the Nuzleaf Brothers weren't done yet.

The one who'd first popped up from the dessert plate was making his way towards one of the windows. Cast wasn't sure why at first: then he realized and his heart stopped.

The Nuzleaf Brother grabbed one of the candles and tossed it into the middle of the room. He continued to race along all the inner windowsills of the restaurant, grabbing each and every candle and tossing it randomly. Tablecloths and curtains started to catch fire and people screamed in an all-out rush to get to the exit.

Cast's heart raced. No! He'd told them not to hurt anybody. Cast thought of using Rain Dance to put out the fire, but he knew it wouldn't work: the restaurant was under a roof. Oh, if only he knew more useful moves!

As the hungry flames licked their way across the room ever faster, Cast saw Professor Stratus rush into the restaurant. Since Nimbus's date had ditched her during the chandelier accident, that left her alone in the smoky room, trying to find the exit. She was the last person left in the room. Stratus quickly grabbed her hand and rushed her towards the exit, until they finally escaped.

Now that everybody was out of the building, Cast watched as the building was engulfed in flames. He could hear the whooping sirens of fire trucks in the distance. The poor little Castform slowly backed away from the building. Out of the corner of his eye he saw the Nuzleaf brothers making their getaway by slipping out the back door.

_What were you doing!?_ Cast screamed at them in a rage. He floated over to them and hovered right in front of them. _I told you not to hurt anybody!_

_And we didn't hurt nobody, alright!_ one of the Nuzleaf Brothers replied snobbishly. _Yeah, everybody in the building got out safe,_ the other snickered. _We followed your instructions exactly,_ they chanted in unison.

_Yeah, but… yes, but that was way too much of a risk! Anybody could have died in that fire!_

_But they didn't! _the Nuzleaf Brothers teased in chorus.

_It doesn't matter, _Cast spat. His whole body was shaking now. _You broke my rules and now I'm breaking yours. The deal is off. I'm not going to do whatever odd job it is that the Triple T wants me to, and you can tell him it was your fault._

The Nuzleaf Brothers glanced at each other and looked at Cast threateningly. _Pardon us-_ one hissed.

_-We've gotta run,_ the other said.

_You have no idea what you've just done,_ they chanted. With that ominous phrase, the two of them somersaulted beneath Cast and dashed off back in the direction of the Fortree Woods.

Cast considered following them, but decided it was more important to check in on Professor Stratus and Professor Nimbus. He floated high above the buildings as the fire trucks started to arrive, looking out on the city as the sun set. He spotted Stratus and Nimbus sitting on a bench down the street.

Nimbus's dress was all sooty from the smoke, and Stratus was comforting her. It was a good thing he'd managed to save her from the fire in time. With all that smoke, it had been impossible for her to see the exit.

The little Castform floated closer to hear what they were saying.

"Listen, I can't believe what happened back there," Stratus said, "but I'll admit it, I came here with not exactly the purest intentions. I… I wanted to take you back to the Weather Institute with me. But… but then I saw you with your date and now… what was I even doing? Look at me, I'm so restless, so without a purpose that I have to pursue goals like this, like saving you from somebody you love!" Nimbus looked like she was about to interject, but Stratus bowled right through her words and just kept on talking. "Ever since finishing Cast there's been an empty whole in my life that I feel like I've just been filling with worthless things. And Nadia, this is the clincher. I can't do this anymore. I'm leaving."

* * *

"What do you mean, you're going with them?" Cumulus stammered at Professor Cirrus. "You can't do that! You have duties at the Weather Institute!"

"But I can!" Cirrus said quietly. "Don't you see?... This is the perfect opportunity for me to travel. It's what I've wanted to do. It was my New Year's Resolution… remember?"

Cumulus was flustered. "Yes, but… No! Cirrus, the Weather Institute needs you! We need you! I need you! You've been a good friend to me ever since we started working together and it would be simply terrible to see you leave. It's only March, there's plenty of time left for you to see your New Year's Resolution fulfilled, so please, in the meantime… stay with us."

The ship's horn bellowed behind them, and Cumulus's aunt and uncle looked on with restrained impatience. A decision needed to be made.

Cirrus looked to Cumulus… then back to the ship. She looked back and sighed with a wan smile. "Fine. I'll stay."

* * *

Hera looked up at the girl who claimed to be her rightful owner. After staring at her for a few seconds, it clicked. That cocoa-colored face, those smiling eyes, the beautiful sunset of Lilycove City… she'd been young when she was abandoned, but she still remembered these details.

Press was still coming to grips with this girl's statement. "Wha- prove it!" he said.

"I will," the girl said, looking at him with a frown on her face. She must not have been to happy to see a strange, narcissistic boy leading her little kitten around the big city all alone. "Follow me," she said.

The girl started to walk. Press and Hera hurried to keep up with her.

"If you're Hera's real owner, then what happened?" Press shouted. "I found her one day curled up all alone, asleep in the cold morning weather of the Fortree Woods. Why did you abandon her?"

"I didn't abandon her!" the girl snapped. Her eyes creased up with melancholy and she sighed. "We were playing outside one day when she saw a Beautifly flutter past. She started to chase it, and I laughed. It was adorable. Then my mom called me inside for something… to tell me dinner was ready, I think. When I came back out, Hera was gone." She continued to walk.

"And you never thought to look for her?" Press asked.

"I did!" the girl shouted. "Are you kidding me!? I looked everywhere!"

"Well, apparently you didn't look hard enough," Press said snootily. "We put posters up all over Fortree City saying that we'd found her."

"Well how the heck was I supposed to know she'd wandered that far away?" the girl replied. "I put posters up too, here in Lilycove, but they were taken down quickly. I guess nobody wants to be bothered by people desperate for their lost kitten when they're vacationing in the 'city of love'," she grumbled.

Press nodded. "Yeah, our posters in Fortree City were probably taken down quickly, too. The people there are so concerned with their city looking all-natural and free that they probably didn't want a bunch of printout posters pasted to their trees all day."

Eventually the two of them arrived at the girl's destination. It was her house. The girl opened the front door and Hera scampered in after her. Press had no choice but to follow. As soon as he entered the room he realized he could smell the aroma of soup cooking.

The girl led him into her room and opened a closet to reveal a stack of cat toys and cat food. She pulled out a picture from the pile: it was of her and a Skitty smiling together. When Press leaned in closer to look at the picture, he could see that the collar around the Skitty's neck read _Hera_, just like the one that had been around her neck when they'd found her.

"Is all this proof enough for you?" the girl asked him dryly. Hera immediately dashed for the kitten toys, making them squeak and pouncing on them and rolling around in them. Just like old times.

Press swallowed and nodded. "Let me just call some people," he said, taking out his phone.

* * *

Nimbus looked at Stratus. Her red dress was starting to lose its luster as the sun set. He'd just told her that he was about to leave. She had a response.

"Solomon… I agreed to go out on a date with that guy because I knew him, from college. He'd been hinting that he wanted to take me on a date for a while, but I'd always turned him down. But recently… well, recently things have been different. I agreed, but I didn't finding myself enjoying the date today. And not just because the building caught on fire." She smiled grimly and continued. "I just wasn't having as good of a time with him as I've ever at the Weather Institute with you." She cleared her throat a little, as if embarrassed to say the next words. "So…"

Just at that very moment, Stratus's phone went off. He picked it up, listened, and shot Nimbus a sober glance.

* * *

In a few minutes, everyone was gathered at the girl's house. Cumulus and Cirrus had said goodbye to Cumulus's aunt and uncle as they left on their cruise, then after hearing Press's phone they'd rushed to the house. Stratus and Nimbus had arrived as well, along with Cast. Even Winnie was there, but only for Hera's sake, not Press's. She refused to make eye contact with him.

The girl had introduced herself as Evangeline; Eva for short. Eva's mother had been a little shocked at first to find so many people arriving at her home, but when she realized what it was all about, she accepted the crowd.

Eva told everybody the story about how she'd lost Hera. Everybody was a little shocked: most of them had forgotten that Hera had been found with a collar in the first place. It seemed so long ago, but now they felt a little guilty.

Cast floated up to Hera, who was sitting on the carpet of Eva's room and gently prodding a squeaky toy.

_So she's really your owner, huh?_ Cast asked, settling down on the carpet next to her.

Hera nodded. _It's true. I can't forget. And I don't want to forget. I have so many great memories of this place… they're from when I was really little, so they're quite fuzzy, but they're all coming back. Cast, this place was my home. My… my real home._

Cast frowned and looked away. _So are you saying that the Weather Institute's not your home? I'd say it's more of a home than some place that you can hardly even remember._

_No, no, that's not what I meant!_ Hera said hurriedly. _It's just… you wouldn't understand. You were born in the Weather Institute-_

_-Not born, made, _Cast said bitterly.

_It doesn't matter,_ Hera replied. _The point is, Eva loved me and she's lost me. I've already been missing from her for too long. I wouldn't want her to have to lose me again._

_So instead of having her lose you, you're going to have _us_ lose you instead? _Cast asked with frustration. _This is one girl! What about Press? He found you. What about the professors? They took you in. What about Winnie? She adores you. What about Gutter? He sees you like a second mother!_

Hera sighed at batted the squeaky toy away. _Cast, I have to do this. Something I don't think you realize is that just because I'm going to stay here-_

_You're going to stay here!? _he shouted.

_Cast, let me finish!_ Hera said, flicking her tail back and forth impatiently. Her whiskers quivered and she spoke again. _Just because I'm going to stay here doesn't mean I'll never see you again. The Weather Institute and Lilycove City are only about a twenty minute's drive away from each other. Yes, I won't be living in the Weather Institute anymore, but that doesn't mean we can't keep in touch. You can visit, I can visit… and there's always the Internet! _

The two of them laughed momentarily at the thought of them two of them trying to use a computer. Cast wasn't exactly built for typing.

_What I'm trying to say is that it's not the end of the world, _Hera finished.

Cast stared and Hera, but his mouth remained shut. Then finally, he exhaled and nodded, floating forward to touch heads with her as a farewell gesture. The two touched their foreheads to each other, smiled, and Cast floated back to land on Stratus's shoulder again.

One by one, everyone from the Weather Institute gathered to say goodbye to Hera. After talking it over with Eva and her mother and seeing Hera's willingness to stay, they agreed to letting her live there. The professors each came up and said goodbye to Hera, even Professor Nimbus, who had initially been hesitant to let Hera stay at the Weather Institute so long ago. Press came up and petted Hera on the head, ruffling up her fur affectionately and saying a few kind words.

Finally, it was Winnie's turn to say goodbye. She'd stayed mostly silent up until now because of Press's presence, but now she just contain herself any longer. She fell onto her knees and scooped up the little Skitty into her arms, crying streams of tears onto the poor Hera. Everybody was a little embarrassed, but then again, it was expected. Winnie had truly adored Hera.

"Be good, kay?" Winnie said, wiping away a tear dramatically as she set Hera back down on the ground and stood up. She flipped her hair out of her eyes and withdrew back into the crowd from the Weather Institute, still sniffling a little.

"Thank you all so much for letting Hera stay," Eva said, kneeling then sitting down next to Hera with her legs crossed. She stroked the little Skitty, who purred happily. "I'm just so happy to finally have her back." She smiled widely, and so did Hera. "I promise we'll visit, and she can also stay at the Weather Institute sometimes. Deal?"

"Deal," Press said, and everybody nodded.

* * *

They spent a few more minutes enjoying Eva and her mother's hospitality, then they all said farewell. Stratus had left early to drive the van out of the parking lot, and now he had just pulled up in the driveway, ready to transport everybody back to the Weather Institute. Hera mewed her fond farewells as they drove away, and they waved back at her until she faded out of sight.

While Stratus drove, Nimbus sat in the passengers seat. Eventually, she turned her head to look at him. "So, what was all of that about leaving?" she asked him.

Stratus sighed, and smiled with his eyes still on the road. He used one hand to turn the wheel, and the other rested on the partition between them. "Nothing," he said, grinning. "I'm not leaving. Not anymore."

"Good," Nimbus declared matter-of-factly. She placed her hand on his. "I won't either."

Cast sat in the back seat of the van, still staring out through the tinted rear window, imagining that if he squinted hard enough he would still be able to see Hera on the doorstep of Eva's house, mewing her goodbyes to him as he smiled back at her. He was still sad to see her go, but he'd realized that she was right. It wasn't the end of the world. They would still see each other. And he had no doubt that Hera was being left in good hands. Eva and her mother seemed like kind, responsible people. Sure, they'd lost Hera once, but they done everything to their ability to have her found, and he doubted they'd make the same mistake again. And if they did… well, Hera was older now. She knew better than to chase random Beautiflies into the forest.

But secretly, Cast hoped Hera would. Then maybe she'd chase that Beautifly all the way back to the Weather Institute's doorstep and start all over again. He missed her. They all did.

Lilycove City could be called many things. Winnie called it the City of Love. In Press's eyes, it was the City of Loss. To Cumulus and Cirrus it was the City of Dreams yet Unfulfilled. To Stratus and Nimbus, the City of Flaming Restaurants.

But in everyone's eyes, it was now Hera's City first and foremost. They would be sure to return.

* * *

**Next Week: Season 1 Bloopers**

**Until then, please review. I'd really like to see what people thought.**


	17. Season 1 Bloopers

**SEASON 1 BLOOPERS**

**I spend three weeks crafting a mega season finale, then a bunch of people read it but not a single one of them reviews. *sigh* ****Anyways, in the spirit of the fic Entwined Opposites, I've decided to make a special bloopers episode, mostly because I couldn't resist! What I did was I picked out some moments from the episodes and tweaked the words a little, with varying effects. :P My little sister helped me on some of these, too. I hope you get at least a smile or two of it!**

**(Although really, if you want to skip this chapter, feel free to. XP It was mostly just me and my sister messing around, but we had fun.)**

* * *

It was a crazy, peculiar day at the Weather Institute. Scientists were busy bouncing around, checking their hair and identifying the times of their lunch breaks: all of the things they did on a typical day. However, on the second floor, one scientist in particular was busy testing out one of their latest creations: a brand new dance move.

**Cut!**

It was another typical day at the Weather Institute when Press arrived with the paparazzi hot on his trail. Press was the male intern who Cast had met on his first day of stardom: he was fourteen years old and already studying the path to becoming a male model. His real name was Preston, but he preferred to be called by his stage name: Présto. Whenever anybody called him by his real name, he tended to become quite irritated.

"Hey, everybody, look what I found," Présto announced. On his body was a stylish new suit. Its pockets were gently shut, and a fluffy boa was draped around his neck. He had a habit of boasting and showing off, coming off as somewhat of a fashionista.

**Cut!**

Professor Stratus turned around, taking his lips off of Professor Nimbus's. _I can explain,_ his expression seemed to say.

**Cut!**

Hera grinned mischievously. _Really?_ she mewed. _That's __**so**__ sad…_ The Skitty jumped daintily into the nest, prodding the egg gently with a paw. However, when she turned around, she _"accidentally"_ roundhouse-kicked the egg, sending it toppling over the edge of the nest!

Cast's eyes widened and he zoomed down towards the egg as it tumbled through the air. But it was too late. The egg fell to the ground and cracked, oozing its yellow yolk all over the forest floor.

Hera jumped from the high branch and landed on the ground below. She stumbled a little, but managed to safely land on both feet. The Skitty licked her lips, saying, _Listen Cast, I'm sorry, but- look on the bright side. We'll be able to make scrambled eggs tomorrow for breakfast! _

**Cut!**

A high-pitched buzzing noise could be heard from within the stranded flying saucer, and a slit appeared on the surface. A tiny hissing sound broke through, and so did a tiny little head.

Coming out from the dome-shaped UFO was a delicate little baby alien. Excited, Cast and Hera hopped down to look at the extraterrestrial being. Its eyes were closed for now, but they quickly snapped open. The little alien's tiny, black eyes slowly focused on Cast.

It smiled, and said three and a half words.

_G'day old chap!_

**Cut!**

"So," said Winnie, "I had this 50% off coupon for the Lilycove Department Store, right? And then I had my parents drive me all the way to Lilycove, but-"

"Let me guess, you forgot the coupon. Oh, the absolute horror," Nimbus said dryly.

Winnie frowned. "No. We got a flat tire and were stranded in the middle of the road; on top of that, four cars behind us crashed into us and all got completely wrecked; We clogged up the entire lane with traffic and when my mom stepped out of the car her bare foot was pierced by a rusty nail so she got lockjaw and we weren't able to drive her to the hospital so we had to call the police but, instead of taking my mom to the hospital the police just gave my dad a speeding ticket and now he's serving twelve years in prison."

Nimbus blinked. "Oh. I'm… I'm so sorry I-"

"GOT YA!" Winnie said, cracking up into laughter.

**Cut!**

"Good day," the man said.

"Nice to meet you," Cirrus said quietly. "And… who exactly do I have the pleasure of meeting?"

The man looked somewhat surprised. "I thought you'd already know about my arrival! I hold the most esteemed position of being young Lady Winnifred's personal hairstylist. And you're gonna want to sit tight girlfriend, because I'm seeing a fashion disaster here."

**Cut!**

"I…" Winnie sighed. She looked at everyone. "I'm really sorry. But…" Now she looked to her butler. "I don't think I'll be going home. I mean, sure, sometimes I totally wish I could just go home, or be somewhere else, but… to be honest, I guess the Weather Institute is kind of like my second home. And… Oh, who am I kidding, screw you suckers, I'm out! HOLLA!"

**Cut!**

All of Gutter's siblings dismissed his story, but he didn't care. Their skepticism only made experience all the more poignant.

He had seen the fabled Mew underneath the truck. This momentous day would always hold a special place in his heart.

**Cut!**

Cirrus hugged herself and rubbed her mittens along her arms in an attempt to heat up. When she spoke, a cloud of warm air puffed from her mouth. "I'd like to travel," she said quietly, looking at the white snow. "I've lived right here in the Fortree area all my life, and don't get me wrong, it's been great, but…"

There was an awkward silence.

"But what?" Cumulus asked.

"Hold on, I think there's supposed to be a flashback here," Cirrus said. "We might have to wait a while, it's probably still buffering."

* * *

**:D Anyone who got the Mew joke, good for you.**

**Next Week: Season 2 Begins**


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